Comments on: Will Anonymous BitTorrent Users Be Able To Hide?

By: Is it time for the Pirate Bay to just let go | TechWag

Is it time for the Pirate Bay to just let go | TechWag — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 12:37:41 +0000

[...] Will Anonymous BitTorrent Users Be Able To Hide? (lockergnome.com) [...]

By: Ryan Farmer

Ryan Farmer — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 15:26:09 +0000

I worked out the math once and found that artists get a whopping 3.5 cents per 99 cent track bought from iTunes.

I’d feel a lot more strongly against file sharing if Apple and the RIAA didn’t take over 96% of that money.

By: mhz

mhz — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 00:40:59 +0000

Well once judges start ruling that you’re *GUILTY* of copyright infringement, and appeals just make the penalty *WORSE*, then you can start believing that it *IS* illegal.

After all, judges make laws with their gavel that carry the same weight (or more) than book law.

If the stuff you’re quoting doesn’t matter to judges anymore, then it *DOESN’T MATTER* anymore. But I hear you. It would be nice if we could share…

By: Ryan Farmer

Ryan Farmer — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 23:53:56 +0000

“No action may be brought under this title alleging infringement of copyright based on the manufacture, importation, or distribution of a digital audio recording device, a digital audio recording medium, an analog recording device, or an analog recording medium, or based on the noncommercial use by a consumer of such a device or medium for making digital musical recordings or analog musical recordings.”

By: Ryan Farmer

Ryan Farmer — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 23:51:01 +0000

Actually, there’s nothing illegal about file sharing, and it’s not law enforcement that looks for it.

It’s a civil suit.

And the Audio Home Recording Act of 1992 actually makes it legal, but who reads the law anymore?

By: Ron Schenone

Ron Schenone — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 21:46:00 +0000

mhz – excellent points.

By: mhz

mhz — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 21:07:18 +0000

Well, when you’re doing something illegal, you can always get caught if the law enforcement is given the resources to search for you.

In any industry, there is the possibility of a sting, where an officer can always impersonate an average user, and just document (capture IP traffic?) the whole conversation, for the purpose of busting the people who are providing the illegal service.

There is no way to authenticate users sufficiently to verify whether they are “police”, so any of these violations only continue because there is not enough interest by the authorities in stopping them.

If someone decides to allocate expensive resources to stopping it, they will be able to “sting” some providers pretty well, and create a strong deterrent.