Firm Hires Students to Tattle on Peers Pirating Music
- Posted on June 14, 2012 at 7:45am by
Liz Klimas
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With little movement on anti-piracy legislation and a growing sense in some groups that some intellectual property on the web should be considered free, record labels are taking copyright protection of their content into their own hands hiring a company to do the work for them.
The company, proMedia, in turn is hiring its best scouts to catch those pirating music and video from the web. Who better to track down these content pirates — comprised mostly of a younger generation — than their own peers. The Spiegel Online (English translation here) reports the company has hired 35 students to rat out others who are illegally downloading content. The Hamburg-based firm was hired by the Federal Association of Music Industry, which is part of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry and therefore includes Sony Universal, Warner and other music labels, to pull IP addresses of people who offer copyrighted music files illegally.
“Peter” is one of them. His job, Spiegel reports, is to ”mingle with the crowds and find out the names of the pirates who offer music for piracy.” Gizmodo explains it as having to “crawl and comb through forums, blogs and file hosting sites” to find those engaging in the nefarious activity.
Peter monitoring sites in order to catch those offering music illegally. (Photo: Corbis via Spiegel Online)
Acknowledging the criminal nature of downloading copyrighted material illegally, Gizmodo writes it is of course bad but likens this practice as “equivalent of do good hall monitors ratting you out to teachers when you’re ditching class.”
Still, it should be noted the “students” tattle-tales are really in their 20s, and, as Peter points out, getting caught is “their own fault.”
“I do not think much of the politics of the pirates,” a 26-year-old proMedia employee named “Peter” said, explaining many of those who engage in illegal downloading believe the content should be free anyway. For him, it’s personal. “As a musician myself, I feel degraded by them.”
The politics of pirates have become ever more apparent as an actual political party — the Pirate Party — has been gaining popularity in Germany. Members of this party have even recently been elected to parliament and with that saying “we are a party to be taken seriously in Germany.”
The U.S. has a pirate party as well with the goals of striving to “reform laws regarding copyright and patents.“ It als supports a ”strengthening of the right to privacy, both on the Internet and in everyday life, and the transparency of state government.”
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NeoMouser
Posted on June 15, 2012 at 3:49amhmm piracy
Report Post »so the industry makes really crappy films
and even crappier music and they want me to pay for crap?
that is the main reason i no longer go to the theaters or even buy music
i just use netfflix and wait that way if when im disappointed in the movie im only out 10$ for the month not per bad movie i can still just turn the radio on or off
Dano.50
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 4:14pmWhile I am all for stopping piracy of intellectual property like movies and songs, I can’t help thinking of the hypocicy that most of the people creating the movies and songs , and in the media industry in general, are for the Odumba government and it’s policies.
I also saw recently saw an anti-piracy ad at the theater. It moaned and groand about how the carpenters, and the caiterers, and the electricians, and the make up people, you know, us lowly commoner trades people, were getting ripped off by piracy.
Since when were they getting a percentage of the gross? They get paid for time on the job and that’s it.
The producers, some actors with enough clout, the singers and agents, and a few people in the inside are the only people affected by piracy.
Still, much as I don’t like the spin they put on this, it’s still wrong to take their profits. They’re the ones who took the all or nothing risks, put in the years of practice, and/or ponied up the cash.
That’s called capitalism.
Report Post »lapitup
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 2:03pmWait? So you’re telling me people who I “think” are my friends are going to turn on me and go tell someone I am cheating the system? This is totally big brother. If that was the case couldn’t someone turn around and sue for “right to privacy” and sue the person who turned them in? Makes you wonder. But it makes sense to me especially that sounds like the world we live in.
People should mind their own business. No one likes a Rat. People in prison get killed for stuff like that.
BTW everyone is affected by politics. Ill just point out the one thing we all are paying (or should be paying) taxes. That is all politics.
Report Post »bravjim
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 3:44pmDamn, you beat me to it. Of course, big brother is everywhere, and is growing faster than the corn in the fields around here.
Report Post »Mike N
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 4:57pmSorry bud, but I side with the guy who works for what he gets. If you’re pirating, you’re just a parasite, and deserve to be penalized.
Report Post »godane
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 1:09pmI don’t like this idea of using kids to catch other kids downloading music. Think of this way. Youtube has millions of music videos on there site. Every time you view a video it is download not just streamed. The copyright law to me can never work on the internet cause everything on the internet is meant to be copyed and is copyed when just viewing something. Just viewing the theblaze you are copying to your web browers cashe. So in theory everyone is a pirate on the internet.
Also the internet was designed for no one to have control and for the content to be everywhere so it can’t be shutdown. This is mirroring which is copying.
Alot of the copyright problems started with copyright act of 1831 and 1909. Guess how was president at the time. Theodore Roosevelt for the 1909 copyright act and Andrew Jackson for the 1831 copyright act. So alot of copyright problems came from these two.
Report Post »POdVet
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 12:35pmSharing can be both a detrimental and beneficial thing depending on who and how it is being done. Are artists and the industry losing profits to pirates? YES! But where they are losing the money is not the college kid his downloads a cd and burns it for his private usage. He could have just as easily recorded individual songs off the radio and made a mix cd. Where the money is lost, is mass pirating buy foreign countries! When I was in the Navy, and went to the Persian Gulf in 1990. We frequently stopped in Bahrain. There in the markets you could buy any album you wanted, even ones that were never actually made IE:Genesis Greatest Hits. Genesis had not made a greatest hits album, but you could buy them in Bahrain. It was the same with movies then and even perfume oils. I am sure it has only gotten worse since, I’d bet that you could easily buy any cd or dvd you could want. Music, movies, games etc etc. The local economy there thrives on pirated American content. And it is not like we do not KNOW that China is ten times as bad. If they want to stop pirates, they need to go after those who are copying and selling pirated material rather than someone who simply downloads a song that could just as easily and legally copy off the radio.
Report Post »Elena2010
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 3:23pmYou are spot on! Trying to stop peer-to-peer piracy rather than the wholesale piracy of China and others who permit it is like turning off a faucet in a flooded out house.
I live on the border w/Mexico. You can get any new movie you want in the flea markets here. Some are lousy copies – made in a movie theatre w/a hand camera, but others are copies of the real DVDs. Occasionally (abt once a year) local PD makes a raid on the flea markets for bootlegs. Still, it’s a drop in the bucket.
Report Post »RamonPreston
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 11:34amThe artists whose music I have don’t complain. Most of them are…dead. Roy Orbison, Patsy Cline, people like that. Back before music became noise. Can’t even name you ONE modern musician.
Report Post »drphil69
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 11:05amHere’s the scenario – one kid rats out another, the kid gets arrested and his parents get fined thousands of dollars. The kid finds out who ratted him out and kills him. Who gets sued?
proMedia, that’s who! Good luck with your business model. I predict you will need LOTS of LAWYERS!
Report Post »Buddynoel
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 10:57amFirst the music industry scruud the older artists by not allowing them to sell their recordings and banning them from airplay. Then, the industry gave itself a black eye by trying to sue grandma and children. Now it‘s decided to create it’s own hitler youth corp to, once again, sue grandma. Face it, there are plenty of revenue sources for music and the recording should only be treated as advertisement for an artist’s performance rather than the only revenue source for lazy performers. I pay $16k in royalties to ASCAP, BMI and SESAC every year and requiring me to buy my music is considered unethical because charging a broadcaster would mean we’d only buy music from the top of the lists and smaller artists would not grace my doorstep. If it’s not free, my 1.4 million listeners won’t hear it.
Report Post »I’ve seem the comments by small artists who say downloading is unfair, but they don’t realize that these anti-piracy laws are actually meant to drive them and older atrists out of the market so the J-Los of the world can make more money. If you’re a new songwriter, do you honestly believe people are going to take a risk and pay 20 bucks for your song? You won’t get played on the radio, in the bars or on the internet. Let people have your recordings, or else you will never get heard.
gosutag
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 10:32amThink about the Internet like this. I’m gonna guess this is why people prefer to call pirating sharing and not stealing. The Internet is like a big family, it has its upsides and downsides. But, there’s one thing that everyone knows about family, and that is that if they have something you need, or would like to use, you can ask them and they will most likely let you borrow it. It’s the same thing with pirating, I suppose. It’s not stealing, it’s just being kind to your family member. Someone paid for it then allowed you to borrow it. Devil’s advocate, against those who are against pirating that is, most likely would say that anyone who doesn’t support pirating must never borrow from their family members.
Report Post »RamonPreston
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 10:29amI remember when everybody used to pop a tape into their radio/tape deck and record it and it was legal. Then Metallica came along and complained that they were loosing a few bucks. Hope they lost lots of fans, too. Stop oppressing your FANS! They pay to go to your concerts and you make a fortune.
Report Post »EqualJustice
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 9:42amI just think stealing is stealing. Stores have SECURITY to prevent theft, why not online security guards? As long as it‘s NOT the government ’spying” on your activity, I’m ok with this. DON‘T STEAL and you’ll have nothing to worry about. You are NOT ‘entitled’ to someone else’s profits for their work.
Report Post »TRILO
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 9:19amFirst of all this is a private company, not the government. If you were a private company would you hire an old person like myself, or would you hire someone younger who can navigate the web, has the lingo and knowledge to blend in? Second, people are stealing another’s property. Whether or not the music industry and artists have profited too much from their product, go look in the mirror as everyone paid their asking price. Stealing is stealing no matter if it is music, a car or clothing off of a shelf in a department store.
I have no problem with a company or an industry trying to protect their property rights. In a free country the right to your property is the foundation of liberty. I certainly would not approve if this was being done by a private company and the information was being shared with the government (like CISPA would allow). On the other hand, we applaude the government and private industry when they are out there searching for pedophiles, hackers, identity thieves and the likes.
Report Post »DimmuBorgir
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 9:44am1‘s and 0’s will always be free
Report Post »65Mustang
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 8:41amThis is the beginning of the slippery slope of the “transformation of America.”
Report Post »Mike N
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 5:02pmWe’ve been on the slippery slope for a very long time already. The slope is just getting steeper, that’s all.
Report Post »13th Imam
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 8:35amJust how many of these music thieves are DEMOLIB”S?? They protest so-called thief bankers during the day, and steal others property during the night.It was much easier to catch them 40 years ago as they had to go into a store and steal. Now it seems to be OK to steal as you can do it from your couch. Kinda hypocritical to be a DEMOCRAT nowaday’s, Eh?
Report Post »Baddoggy
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 8:08amI think the GESTAPO started off with something like this…Hey kids!! Your parents don’t like Barrak? Write an essay to tell us what they said for a free iTunes upload! If we take them off to a FEMA camp you can meet Justin Beiber!!
Report Post »grudgywoof
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 8:06amI don’t think there is an answer to this issue. As a Nashvillian I am very aware that the music community is getting screwed out of their intellectual property and profits however I also feel a little glee in the fact that that the corporate music industry is swinging in the wind after years of profiting off of the same people and overcharging for recorded music. I have spent well over $10K on records and discs in my life and own over 1000 discs in my collection. I also have been known to download music (mostly older stuff) and practice material (I’m a guitar player in a band at times). Jack White (White Stripes and 3rd Man Records owner) has come up with a marketing scheme by pressing records in limited numbers (making them rare and in high demand) and auctioning them off with the profits going to the artists and 3rd Man. They are getting $200 plus for these and it’s a money making deal so perhaps just a little creative thinking is required.
Report Post »Bill923
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 8:02amGo ahead content pirates, sing the song with me; “Say Jump!, (Down on Jumpstreet) Say Jump! (Down on Jumpstreet.) I can just see Michael Deluise with his classic Pee Wee Herman “Busted” line. It’s about time we started playing hardball with thieves. Oh and yes, they are thieves because the desire to possess gives a product it’s inherit value, and therefore it’s status as a property.
Report Post »Baddoggy
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 8:10amI am sure you would have made a great NAZI…Have you thought about going to work as a spy for the Obama Administration? They would love your spubk!
Report Post »booger71
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 8:58amNo honor in being a snitch
Report Post »Melika
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 9:18am@ Baddoggy: So what you are saying is property rights are the equivalent of the Nazis? I’m a little confused as to your position on theft. If the “younger generation” of thieves were running around your neighborhood stealing lots of little things from yourself and your neighbors, would you be so flippant about the theft? There is plenty of free content out there on the web and otherwise. If you and the pirates want more free content, I suggest getting off your rears and spend your own time and money creating it.
@ Booger71: I guess everyone who has ever testified against a defendant in a criminal case is a snitch too? Or would the term “snitch” only apply to a person who points out a criminal to the cops when they get to a scene? Maybe we should make laws that only the victim can testify or call the police, or would they then become snitches too? Of course, murder would then have to be legalized since we wouldn’t want anyone to be a snitch and help the cops.
Report Post »Bad Kitty
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 9:21amExcept when a guy steal your friends backpack, beats him up, then ransacks his locker…
Report Post »Baddoggy
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 10:23amProperty rights are one thing. But to hire kids to spy on others is GESTAPO like. You dont get it do you?
Peace for security equals no peace and no security…
Report Post »Spying for security ends up with EVERYONE being a spy…GESTAPO….
gosutag
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 10:36am@BADDOGGY: I just had to search up GESTAPO to understand what it meant and I’m probably still not clear. However, I’m sure I read a book about this somewhere. The story consisted of a total government(Large company CEOs comprised the government) control society, where snitches were regular everyday people who got an extra benefit or so by snitching on their fellow man. If anyone knows what I’m remembering, please tell me again. I just can’t remember the name.
Report Post »BIgWheeler
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 11:08am@Baddoggy, the “kids” are in their 20′s –old enough to work legally– and the job is really nothing more than that of a security guard.
Report Post »Red Max
Posted on June 14, 2012 at 6:47pm@BADDOGGY – Well said. Reminds me of this. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJlTmDxiqk0&feature=related
Report Post »