Piracy

Piracy,
intelectual property and copyright.

Tabula Rasa
Speaking Activities

​Introduction

​1)    Are you a pirate? Do you pay for music, movies, operating systems, and textbooks?

2)    Have you ever had an idea stolen? What intellectual property do you own?

3)    Is illegally downloading something the same as stealing it?

Case study

​Let's have a look at the following real-life case:

Napster was a pioneering peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing platform that allowed users to share and download music files freely. Launched in 1999 by Shawn Fanning, it quickly gained immense popularity, reaching millions of users.

Consequences

1. ​Legal Action:

• Artists and Record Labels vs. Napster: Major record labels, including Metallica and Dr. Dre, filed lawsuits against Napster for copyright infringement. The courts ruled in favor of the record labels, leading to legal actions and eventual shutdowns of Napster.

  2. Impact on the Music Industry:

  • The Napster controversy had a profound impact on the music industry, changing the landscape of how music was distributed and consumed. It paved the way for legal alternatives like iTunes and streaming services.

• Do you believe that downloading music for free on platforms like Spotify, Deezer, YouTube Music or iTunes is ethically acceptable? Why (not)?

• Were there alternative solutions that Napster could have implemented to avoid copyright infringement while still providing a music-sharing platform?

• How could the music industry have responded differently to the challenges posed by Napster?

• What responsibility do users have in ensuring that the content they access and share online adheres to copyright laws?

• What are the challenges in finding a balance between encouraging innovation and preventing copyright infringement?

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The Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) (February 12, 2012)

In January 2012, the American public and media were in an uproar over two bills, SOPA & PIPA, which proposed to block access to Internet content that infringed copyright. The protesters were successful in getting the bills postponed. However, now a larger agreement named the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) has found its way into the spotlight.

Broadly speaking, ACTA resembles SOPA but expands on patents, counterfeit goods, and intellectual property rights. It calls for international standards to enforce property rights, criminal punishment for lawbreakers, and the creation of a new international governing body for its purposes. Australia, Canada, Japan, South Korea, Morocco, New Zealand, Singapore, and the US have signed the agreement. Twenty-two E.U. states have signed, while others, including Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Germany, have refused.  

Initially, there was much disagreement over an ACTA rule to permit checks at international borders and airports for copyrighted digital material. People feared this would allow guards to randomly check and confiscate laptops and iPods that contained illegal content. ACTA officials have recently given in to public pressure and changed the agreement. The new rules have an exception that allows countries to opt out on checking personal baggage. 

ACTA also proposed to hold Internet service providers partly responsible for their customers’ online content. Widespread criticism of this requirement has also led to its amendment, leaving it in the hands of countries to do as much or little as they want with individual pirates. 

ACTA’s creators have been accused of concealing the agreement from the public. Although ACTA negotiations began in October 2007, the public only eventually found out about it through leaked documents. ACTA’s official press release was actually done in an Agriculture and Fisheries Meeting report.

Anti-ACTA protests have been held across Europe. Hacker groups are targeting government websites that support the bill. ACTA will only go into effect once 5 countries have signed and implemented it, which may take until 2013. Time will tell if it can survive until then.

Open Ended

What is the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA), and how does it differ from SOPA and PIPA?

Open Ended

Which countries have signed the ACTA agreement, and what challenges or disagreements have arisen among European Union states regarding its adoption?

Open Ended

How did public concerns and criticisms impact the development of ACTA, specifically in terms of border checks for copyrighted digital material and the responsibility of Internet service providers?

Match

Match the words with their meaning as used in the article.

• uproar

• bill

• infringe (verb)

• postpone (verb)

• counterfeit

a situation in which angry people shout

a written suggestion for a new law

violate; break; overstep

delay; put off

fake

• a situation in which angry people shout

• a written suggestion for a new law

• violate; break; overstep

• delay; put off

• fake

Match

Match the words with their meaning as used in the article.

• confiscate (verb)

• give in (verb)

• opt out (verb)

• widespread

take away sth from sb, esp.as punishment

1. accept defeat; surrender

1. choose not to participate in sth

happening over a large area/among people

• take away sth from sb, esp.as punishment

• 1. accept defeat; surrender

• 1. choose not to participate in sth

• happening over a large area/among people

Match

Match the words with their meaning as used in the article.

• amendment

• conceal (verb)

• leak (verb)

• implement (verb)

change/improvement made to law/document

1. hide

1. give secret information to the public

put in place; apply; carry out

• change/improvement made to law/document

• 1. hide

• 1. give secret information to the public

• put in place; apply; carry out

Open Ended

Master the language: Connect the below ideas to make a sentence:

government / crush / uprising -->

1. e.g. The government plans to crush the uprising.

2. 1. bill / infringe / copyright

Open Ended

Master the language: Connect the below ideas to make a sentence:

2. 2. uproar / give in

Open Ended

Master the language: Connect the below ideas to make a sentence:

2. 3. widespread / postpone

Open Ended

Master the language: Connect the below ideas to make a sentence:

2. 4. counterfeit / confiscate

Open Ended

Master the language: Connect the below ideas to make a sentence:

2. 5. opt out / rule

Open Ended

Master the language: Connect the below ideas to make a sentence:

2. 6. amendment / criticism

Open Ended

Master the language: Connect the below ideas to make a sentence:

2. 7. conceal / public

Open Ended

Master the language: Connect the below ideas to make a sentence:

2. 8. leak / document

Open Ended

Master the language: Connect the below ideas to make a sentence:

2. 9. implement / 2023

Final task

If you were in charge of adding a brand new rule and eliminate and old one, which ones would you create and eliminate and why?
( 5 Mins )