I am pretty sure that you have heard about the ruckus that the Pirate Bay trial created. In the past several weeks, that’s all that many people could talk about; and why not? Pirate Bay has been around for so long that a lot of Internet users consider it part of the virtual landscape. Anyhow, the trial is over, and a new anti-file sharing law was passed in Sweden as a result.
Dubbed the IPRED law, it has made such a strong and positive impact on the legal downloading industry in the country. According to local reports, music sales have increased by a stupendous 100 percent in the days after the IPRED law was passed! The sales include those that were downloaded on PCs and mobile phones.
Ice News provides more details:
The Local newspaper reports that the company InProdicon is one of Sweden’s main legal file download companies. It provides around half of all downloaded music purchased within Sweden through its online and mobile phone services in conjunction with clients such as Telia, Tele2, Ahlens and MTV.
“The first week after the introduction of IPRED, sales increased by 100 percent compared to the previous weeks. I don’t know if this is only because of IPRED, but it is definitely a sign of a major change,” said InProdicon’s managing director Klas Brannstrom.
While the law and the results have a lot of implications, one thing is pretty clear to me: it seems to be effective in increasing legal downloads. I wouldn’t be surprised if more countries follow suit.
Categories: Downloading Legally, Mobile Phones, Music
This weirded me out, really. I guess it has just never occurred to me that a big company such as Google would actually offer this much. And in China?
Then again, it all made sense after I read the whole news piece. So this is what’s going on. We know that China is perhaps the leading country when it comes to piracy. And I am not talking about music and movies only. Fake bags, clothes, and everything else are made in China!
Anyway, I digressed, but China is known for being the pirate’s haven. You can find practically any movie or music album in this country. And we know that various sectors from around the world have been trying to kill this lucrative business. Apparently, their efforts have not been that effective as the piracy business in China is still thriving.
Enter Google. They have started a new service, a free MP3 download service all throughout China. The aim is, obviously, to divert those who download illegally into downloading legally. Naturally, the only way to do this is to make available media for free.
And how exactly is Google going to be able to keep the service running if they do not charge the users? The answer is simple: through ads. The service is actually being backed up by 14 independent labels, who want to make a change and yet continue earning money.
Google has been testing this service since August of last year and it looks like it could fly. However, for those of us outside China, we will not be getting even a taste of the service. And why not, I ask?
Categories: Downloading Legally, Freeware, Music
I guess whatever happened on Download Day in France did not do much to sway the government officials in the country. Last Thursday, April 2, the anti-piracy bill was approved by the authorities. This bill, as I previously mentioned in another post, will cut off the Internet access of those who are caught illegal downloaders. Obviously, the bill has the support of artists but has been opposed vehemently by consumer groups.
AFP has the story:
Deputies from the ruling UMP party voted to adopt the contested measure, overriding a challenge from the Socialist opposition which called it “an assault on public and individual liberties.”
Lawmakers earlier voted unanimously however to strike out a provision that would have forced banned users to keep paying their Internet subscription fees.
Once approved article by article, the entire bill will be submitted to the National Assembly for a vote.
On the one hand, there is some good news for those who download illegally. One, if someone gets caught, he will not have to continue paying for his Internet as it is already cut off. While that makes perfect sense, that is a much better alternative than having to continue paying for the service even when it has been cut, right? Two, the bill still has to be reviewed and voted on. Knowing how governments work, this could take months.
Well what can I say? They should have seen this coming. After all, illegal downloading is illegal, no ifs or buts about it. There are many other options out there which do not break the law anyway.
Categories: Site News
