[A2k] ACTA up

[Riaz K Tayob]

ACTA up

The Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) is a treaty being
negotiated by Australia, Canada, the European Union, Japan, Mexico, New
Zealand, South Korea, and the United States. Despite the name, the
treaty's main concern is not just the protection of brand names against
generic knock-offs, but also the protection of intellectual property.

The problem is that this treaty is being negotiated in secret, so no-one
knows what is going to be in it. That said, the few available
indications are so ominous that the Free Software Foundation has
launched a campaign (via) to raise public awareness of the possibilities.

    Although the proposed treaty's title might suggest that the
agreement deals only with counterfeit physical goods (such as
medicines), what little information has been made available publicly by
negotiating governments about the content of the treaty makes it clear
that it will have a far broader scope, and in particular, will deal with
new tools targeting "Internet distribution and information technology".

What we know so far is that the proposed agreement would empower
security officials at airports and other international borders to
conduct random searches of laptops, MP3 players, and cellular phones for
illegally downloaded or ripped music and films. Travellers with
infringing content would be subject to a fine and may have their devices
confiscated or destroyed.

A document leaked to Wikileaks also includes a provision to force
Internet service providers to provide information about suspected
copyright infringers without a warrant, making it easier for the record
industry to sue music file sharers and for officials to shut down
non-commercial BitTorrent websites.

As it stands, the proposals look very much like a shopping list from
groups such as the Recording Industry Association of America and the
Motion Picture Association of America, both of which have been lobbying
governments in the United States and other countries for similar
measures for years. And the agreement is completely out of control even
before the negotiations are concluded as it would create its own
governing body. So existing international institutions such as the World
Trade Organization, the World Intellectual Property Organization and the
United Nations would have no oversight.

http://www.pulpmovies.com/blog/2008/07/acta-up