Controversial 'six strikes' Copyright Alert System laid to rest in the US

[Shawn Knight]

The Center for Copyright Information has announced that after four years of “extensive consumer education and engagement,” they’re pulling the plug on the Copyright Alert System (CAS).

In a brief statement on the matter, the Center for Copyright Information said the program demonstrated that real progress is possible when content creators, Internet innovators and consumer advocates come together in a collaborative and consensus-driven process.

Years in the making, the controversial “six strikes” alert system launched in the US in early 2013. The result of a voluntary agreement between major Internet service providers including AT&T, Comcast, Time Warner Cable and Verizon, the CAS consisted of three tiers of escalating warnings with each tier comprised of two individual warnings (hence the six strikes reference).

The first several warnings were meant to educate Internet users that viewing pirated content was illegal and informing them of legal avenues to obtain content. Continued behavior escalated the warnings and could potentially result in penalties such as reduced connection speeds.

The Center for Copyright Information didn’t give a reason as to why it was ending the program although the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) has its own opinion.

Steven Fabrizio, executive vice president and global general counsel at the MPAA, said in a statement to Variety that repeat infringers are the ones who drive ongoing and problematic peer-to-peer (P2P) piracy. The CAS simply wasn’t set up to deal with hardcore repeat infringers, he said, adding that persistent pirates must instead be addressed by ISPs under their “repeat infringer” policies as provided in the Digital Millennium Copyright Act.”

As Fabrizio alluded to, the system only applied to P2P piracy meaning users of streaming sites, file-hosting services, Usenet and so on were able to fly under the proverbial radar.

Image via Kalimf, Getty Images

Permalink to story.

https://www.techspot.com/news/67947-controversial-ix-strikes-copyright-alert-system-laid-rest.html

 

[Cycloid Torus]

Sounds like it was incomplete, unfinished and infeasible.

 

[Kunming]

Piracy is good - even though its just filesharing

 

[Evernessince]

Sounds like it was incomplete, unfinished and infeasible.

Exactly. They setup the system in such a way that they were sending letters out to people who've never pirated. If you are going to accuse someone, do so with some evidence at least.

 

[Kunming]

Exactly. They setup the system in such a way that they were sending letters out to people who've never pirated. If you are going to accuse someone, do so with some evidence at least.

But that would just be alternative facts anyway

 

[Greg S]

Exactly. They setup the system in such a way that they were sending letters out to people who've never pirated. If you are going to accuse someone, do so with some evidence at least.

But that would just be alternative facts anyway

No. It's not "alternative facts". Just because I use an IP address that has pirated content in the past few days or weeks, or even years doesn't mean that I did anything wrong. Maybe someone came to my house and used my wifi for a few days. Maybe a neighbor cracked my password and was using my network to pirate content. Maybe someone else was just spoofing their IP address and used mine as their cover. There are so many impracticalities to overcome when trying to prove who actually pirated the content on which network.

 

[Evernessince]

No. It's not "alternative facts". Just because I use an IP address that has pirated content in the past few days or weeks, or even years doesn't mean that I did anything wrong. Maybe someone came to my house and used my wifi for a few days. Maybe a neighbor cracked my password and was using my network to pirate content. Maybe someone else was just spoofing their IP address and used mine as their cover. There are so many impracticalities to overcome when trying to prove who actually pirated the content on which network.

I think he was just poking fun, at least I hope he was.

Don't forget that all consumer internet plans rotate IP address every couple of days as well. You have to pay extra to get a static IP.

 

[3volv3d]

No. It's not "alternative facts". Just because I use an IP address that has pirated content in the past few days or weeks, or even years doesn't mean that I did anything wrong. Maybe someone came to my house and used my wifi for a few days. Maybe a neighbor cracked my password and was using my network to pirate content. Maybe someone else was just spoofing their IP address and used mine as their cover. There are so many impracticalities to overcome when trying to prove who actually pirated the content on which network.

I think he was just poking fun, at least I hope he was.

Don't forget that all consumer internet plans rotate IP address every couple of days as well. You have to pay extra to get a static IP.

Aye sure he was just poking fun.

They realised it didn't work, and people will feel that little safer seeing articles like this, while the FCC uses the cover of the Media scaring everyone on the planet with the "Oh God look at what Trump is up to now" hourly update, and trying to sneak in another bill that Steals your internet freedoms.

Yea focus people, theres some real A holes still pushing on them bills. Team America World Police: F**K Yeah! Internet edition

 

[Skidmarksdeluxe]

Piracy is good - even though its just filesharing

Show me someone who says who they haven't pirated anything in their lives and I'll show you a liar.

 

[ForgottenLegion]

Here's an idea, make content that's actually worth buying and also available at a fair price without having having to jump through hoops and you'll have more buyers.

Why is game of thrones the most pirated show? Because to watch it you need a subscription to Sky/HBO and not everyone can afford/justify that just especially just to watch one show.
Give people a fair price to buy the season alone with perhaps the incentive of getting the BluRay at the end of it and you'll have more sales.

But no, piracy is solely to blame.

 

[andy06shake]

Just use a VPN, it wont 100% stop the information on your network being tracked, but it will somewhat retard the ability of these people to allegedly gather information and send out spurious letters that claim you have pirated.

 

[Theinsanegamer]

Here's an idea, make content that's actually worth buying and also available at a fair price without having having to jump through hoops and you'll have more buyers.

Why is game of thrones the most pirated show? Because to watch it you need a subscription to Sky/HBO and not everyone can afford/justify that just especially just to watch one show.
Give people a fair price to buy the season alone with perhaps the incentive of getting the BluRay at the end of it and you'll have more sales.

But no, piracy is solely to blame.

BUT MUH PROFITS!

And yes, the key to piracy is to out-convenience the pirated content. Newell figured that out years ago, and that has allowed steam to become a juggernaut, despite some serious problems.

Convenience wins, and makes money. But the old stewards of the media industry just cant wrap their minds around these here computers, or the fact that the distribution model has changed.

 

[Kunming]

Show me someone who says who they haven't pirated anything in their lives and I'll show you a liar.

I would show you my grandmom, but it's ok, I already know she's a liar.

lol

 

[Uncle Al]

I read an interesting white paper out of the gaming industry years ago that actually encouraged some degree of piracy of software. I know Microsoft used to monitor the conversation between pirates of their software (years ago) as a very good source for bug fixes and several of the game companies considered it a form of "advertising" which spread their sales. The industry as a whole used to acknowledge that piracy was simply a fact of life they would live with. I even remember AutoCAD using a physical "flash drive" like dongle to prevent hackers, but that was easily patched and they dropped it after a few years.

Got to make you wonder how much $$ is spent on anti-piracy and if they are seeing any kind of return on their investment?

 

[Kunming]

I read an interesting white paper out of the gaming industry years ago that actually encouraged some degree of piracy of software. I know Microsoft used to monitor the conversation between pirates of their software (years ago) as a very good source for bug fixes and several of the game companies considered it a form of "advertising" which spread their sales. The industry as a whole used to acknowledge that piracy was simply a fact of life they would live with. I even remember AutoCAD using a physical "flash drive" like dongle to prevent hackers, but that was easily patched and they dropped it after a few years.

Got to make you wonder how much $$ is spent on anti-piracy and if they are seeing any kind of return on their investment?

True. It's just dumb. "Piracy" is little more than an excuse by big corporations to institute more restrictive controls of many kinds. Pirates are often the best customers.

 

[3volv3d]

I read an interesting white paper out of the gaming industry years ago that actually encouraged some degree of piracy of software. I know Microsoft used to monitor the conversation between pirates of their software (years ago) as a very good source for bug fixes and several of the game companies considered it a form of "advertising" which spread their sales. The industry as a whole used to acknowledge that piracy was simply a fact of life they would live with. I even remember AutoCAD using a physical "flash drive" like dongle to prevent hackers, but that was easily patched and they dropped it after a few years.

Got to make you wonder how much $$ is spent on anti-piracy and if they are seeing any kind of return on their investment?

I have used this on many sites before about this, but Jo Whiley did a programme about piracy, and found that those that pirated music, spent 1.5 x more on music from stores than those who didn't. I can only assume because they knew which albums didn't have just one or two good tracks among a heap o sheet.
So piracy to my mind has always been a load of bullshit.

People have always pirated shows. I saw various films copied from video stores, and friends who had tapes or cds of music would make mix tapes for friends.
The only difference now is that it is digital and people can see numbers, do some math and say, we are losing x amount of money... and the problem is, its bad math, it doesn't take in for the variables , the people that actually bought the product later, or would not have paid out anyway.

And then subscriptions for cable/sky/isp's etc. I can't stand these companies. They usually tie you into at least a 12 month contract. If they fk you over they won't let you out of the contract, they would rather go to court. And when they drop prices, or change bundles / tariffs, they don't change them with your account you still pay through the roof. There is no customer care it is just customer wallet rape. And its their shady practices that people think "nah im done you owe me if anything, up yours." And they do owe you.

Piracy has created many lucrative jobs, and branches within existing company products, mp3 players, divx players, streaming devices, nas boxes, vpns, seed boxes, the cloud, hdd and flash drive sales, even the lawyers and lobbyists who try to scare you into paying up through letters ( as they usually have no legal ground or evidence). The same companies who moan about piracy have encouraged and milked it in other areas.

So fk the 6 strikes and fk the FCC trying to take away the privacy.

They are feckin hypocrites. T

 

[deemon]

Some troll moderators in action again? Why exactly was my post deleted?

 

[mailpup]

Shouting.