By , February 03, 2012.

What do Record Labels Actually Do? You’d be Surprised — “For all the cynicism about money-grabbing majors, labels still offer artists the security they need to produce their best work,” says Helienne Lindvall of the Guardian. “It’s true the internet has been brilliant for artists in many ways, giving them an alternative route to make contact with and sell directly to fans, but record labels do much more than distribute to retailers.”

5 Ways Piracy is Changing — Jonathan Bailey offers some thoughts on how the Megaupload indictment has affected the landscape of online infringement. “Piracy has been a part of being a content creator since day one and it isn’t going to go away. However, with time and effort, it may become more of a nuisance than a major concern and that, in the long run, should be the end goal. Not the elimination of piracy, but the mitigation of it.”

Bill C-11, “Digital Locks”, and Copyright Reform: What Kind of Business Models Do We Want to Encourage? — James Gannon poses this question in light of Canada’s efforts to update its copyright law. “While laws that would legalize modchip manufacturers and file-sharing websites might be popular with certain segments of the population, they are still bad economic policy. These are not business models that lead to sustainable, job-heavy enterprises; these are not business models that provide any rewards to artists and creative workers,” says Gannon. “When copyright opponents claim that we shouldn’t amend our laws in order to support outdated business models, I couldn’t agree more.”

Judge Declares Batmobile is Subject to Copyright — Why so serious? A federal judge denied a motion to dismiss a claim of copyright infringement against a defendant for creating replicas of the Batmobile. That doesn’t necessarily mean infringement, just that, at this stage, such a claim is plausible — which is not a terribly novel decision, since courts have long held that artistic elements of functional objects can be protected. But it does make for good water-cooler discussion.

Lobbyists 1, Internet 0: An Alternative Take on SOPA — It’s interesting to read accounts of the SOPA blackout that seem to take the view that opposition arouse wholly spontaneously. David Rodnitzky doesn’t buy it, and offers a look behind the scenes that is comprehensive yet still only the tip of the iceberg. “The notion that this was a battle of David vs. Goliath – the unwashed masses versus powerful Hollywood lobbyists – is a fiction. The outrage against SOPA simply would not have occurred without well-funded, well-organized efforts led by lobbyists and lawyers at major Internet sites.”

2Cellos – the artists behind ‘Glee’s’ ‘Smooth Criminal’ cover — There was something incredible about the two cellists providing the music for one of the songs on Glee this week, so I looked them up and discovered 2Cellos, a very talented duo. Good stuff.

8 Comments

  1. Ha! That 2Cellos scene on Glee was awesome. Best episode in a while.

  2. However, with time and effort, it may become more of a nuisance than a major concern and that, in the long run, should be the end goal. Not the elimination of piracy, but the mitigation of it.

    It never was a major concern. People make a big deal about being able to copy instead of finding new ways to make money. As the article says:

    As technology continues to evolve, the battle between pirates and copyright holders is going to escalate, and pirates are always, always going to be one step ahead.

    But what’s clear is that legislation is not the answer. Piracy is already illegal in the US, and most places around the world, yet it persists underground, but more often in plain sight. Short of passing a law that allows the actual blacklisting of websites like China and Iran, there is no legislative solution. That’s what SOPA and PIPA were attempting to do, but it so obviously trampled on the First Amendment, it was laughed out of existence as the entire internet protested it. The only other thing you could get the internet to agree on was if they tried to institute a ban on cat pictures.

    • “It never was a major concern. People make a big deal about being able to copy instead of finding new ways to make money.

      …Says someone who most likely never created anything in his life worth stealing…

      Go play your videogames, the adults are having a conversation..

      • So cute. You can’t a actually argue a valid point and you have to try to chastise others.

        Keep trying. Maybe you’ll have better arguments in the future that aren’t mired in misleading details in the future.

        • You can’t a actually argue a valid point and you have to try to chastise others.

          Pot meet kettle.

        • “Maybe you’ll have better arguments in the future that aren’t mired in misleading details in the future.”

          Like next time anti-piracy legislation is presented? Are you saying you won’t go around lying about it and trying to scare people on your pirate blog?

          • Why lie? That’s the MPAA’s job. I just don’t fall for $58 billion “losses” when the MPAA has a hard time counting.

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