Prenda update

[You Are Guilty]

Don't know if anyone (other than quincy, who I assume follows every IP case) has been watching this unfold, but for those who have been, it was an interesting motion hearing:
http://www.popehat.com/2013/03/11/brett-gibbs-gets-his-day-in-court-but-prenda-law-is-the-star/

Can't wait to see the written decision

 

[quincy]

Don't know if anyone (other than quincy, who I assume follows every IP case) has been watching this unfold, but for those who have been, it was an interesting motion hearing:
http://www.popehat.com/2013/03/11/brett-gibbs-gets-his-day-in-court-but-prenda-law-is-the-star/

Can't wait to see the written decision

I have been aware of several Motions to Stay filed in the last few weeks by defendants in AF Holdings cases here in Michigan but have not been following the Prenda Law drama real closely. Judge Wright certainly did not disguise his feelings about the Prenda crew, did he?

It appears that Prenda Law, Steele, et al, are in a whole mess of trouble, with a DOJ meeting a good possibility in their future.

 

[You Are Guilty]

Good news for all you porn pirates, too.


(That's the royal "you", of course).

 

[quincy]

Well, maybe not good news for all of them.

And thank you for clarifying the "you."

 

[You Are Guilty]

Just to keep this topic updated, here's the latest:
http://www.popehat.com/2013/04/02/prenda-laws-attorneys-take-the-fifth-rather-than-answer-judge-wrights-questions/

I, for one, cannot wait to read the actual transcript, much less Judge Wright's decision.

 

[You Are Guilty]

Wow, just when I thought it could not get any more weird, we get this:

http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130603/02204423292/new-anti-prenda-court-filing-lays-out-tons-evidence-suggesting-john-steele-uploaded-videos-to-bittorrent-himself.shtml

 

[tranquility]

If true, John Steele will have some explaining to do to some defendants and, depending on exact representations in court, to some judges. Maybe a DA or two.

 

[coolmaltese]

Wow, just when I thought it could not get any more weird, we get this:

http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130603/02204423292/new-anti-prenda-court-filing-lays-out-tons-evidence-suggesting-john-steele-uploaded-videos-to-bittorrent-himself.shtml

That is the first time I have seen possible actual proof being offered of a company uploading their related copyright material and then waiting for people to download it and then seeking damages from them. This has been rumored to have been going on for many years.

Someone also once claimed that when they clicked on a link to download a freeware software program, instead of the freeware downloading, a movie actually downloaded and a C&D and settlement offer followed...

 

[You Are Guilty]

I read all 30+ pages of the expert aff, and, but for about 3 paragraphs of the introduction and the part about a google search, I understood none of it. However, it certainly has the appearance of damning evidence against Steele. So much for VPN and torrent anonymity, I guess.

I imagine the criminal investigation can't be too far behind.

 

[quincy]

I am bumping this thread to get a spammer off the main board.

I can add to this thread, though, by saying that the IRS Criminal Division has already been asked to investigate Prenda Law.

 

[TheGeekess]

I am bumping this thread to get a spammer off the main board.

I can add to this thread, though, by saying that the IRS Criminal Division has already been asked to investigate Prenda Law.

Things that make you go hmmm....

 

[quincy]

Things that make you go hmmm....

Yup. . . . . .

 

[You Are Guilty]

The wheels of justice turn slow, but they do turn (although, it helps these were all Federal cases):

http://www.popehat.com/2013/11/06/another-hammer-drops-on-prenda-law/

ka-CHOW!

 

[single317dad]

That is the first time I have seen possible actual proof being offered of a company uploading their related copyright material and then waiting for people to download it and then seeking damages from them. This has been rumored to have been going on for many years.

Someone also once claimed that when they clicked on a link to download a freeware software program, instead of the freeware downloading, a movie actually downloaded and a C&D and settlement offer followed...

This is just an expansion of what Sony started doing around 2000: they'd seed corrupt songs into the swarms on Kazaa and edonkey, that would either play a loop of 15 seconds of the "catchy" part, or play half the song then refuse to decode. Then they and others started seeding videos that required a license purchase to view. It didn't take long for scammers to latch onto that idea, when they saw an opportunity to get paid. This is the logical continuation of that, a corrupt legal entity ramping up the scam.

I agree, however -- this is the first time I've seen actual proof. Funny, though, that if one were to block all of Sony's IP ranges, they rarely got corrupt MP3s from Napster and Kazaa. There was a lot of talk about taking Sony to court, that they should lose copyright on the music they shared (corrupted or otherwise), that the case was going to change copyright law wholesale. AFAIK nothing came of it; I don't even recall that there ever was a case.

 

[quincy]

The wheels of justice turn slow, but they do turn (although, it helps these were all Federal cases):

http://www.popehat.com/2013/11/06/another-hammer-drops-on-prenda-law/

ka-CHOW!

Not unexpected, I guess, considering what happened with Prenda and crew when before Judge Wright. Judge Noel certainly didn't mince words, huh?

I think it could be important to note, however, for those defendants who have been named and who are now being sued in similar copyright infringement cases in various courtrooms around the country, that not all defendants will have their copyright infringement actions dismissed and their dollar losses returned. While Prenda has opened the door for wider investigation into the other copyright infringement claims being pursued by other copyright holders and the law firms representing them, the illegal stunts by Prenda and Steele may not be the norm.

In other words, it is probably too soon for porn infringers who have already been targeted by movie companies to get their hopes up too high that their own cases will be dismissed.