http://www.techdirt.com/ Easily digestible tech news.... http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/15164823159/bad-day-prenda-continues-judge-rejects-stay-adds-1k-per-day-each-day-they-dont-pay-up.shtml#c110 Tue, 21 May 2013 16:32:01 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/15164823159/bad-day-prenda-continues-judge-rejects-stay-adds-1k-per-day-each-day-they-dont-pay-up.shtml#c110
I do think you are right though that Judge Chen may have decided not to move forward with any penalties due to the fact that Judge Wright has already started the proverbial hammer starting it's fall on Team Prenda.

That being said I don't know if Team Prenda will escape unscathed from Judge Chen. I would think Judge Chen is smart enough to know that something smells with this, but I believe he was looking at it from the potential of their being an appeal.

It could be construed as an honest mistake from a CEO who is not too smart (Paging Mark Lutz)I think Judge Chen would rather let them skate on this one, knowing full well they are in serious trouble elsewhere in the state and all over the country.

While they may have escaped this one, I think we all know the noose is becoming a lot tighter]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/15164823159/bad-day-prenda-continues-judge-rejects-stay-adds-1k-per-day-each-day-they-dont-pay-up.shtml#c101 Tue, 21 May 2013 16:31:50 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/15164823159/bad-day-prenda-continues-judge-rejects-stay-adds-1k-per-day-each-day-they-dont-pay-up.shtml#c101 IT IS SO ORDERED.Make it so, Number One.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/10401723156/if-you-think-you-should-actually-own-products-you-bought-now-would-be-good-time-to-call-congress.shtml#c1257 Tue, 21 May 2013 16:26:50 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/10401723156/if-you-think-you-should-actually-own-products-you-bought-now-would-be-good-time-to-call-congress.shtml#c1257 very well, it's hypocrisy.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/15164823159/bad-day-prenda-continues-judge-rejects-stay-adds-1k-per-day-each-day-they-dont-pay-up.shtml#c97 Tue, 21 May 2013 16:25:27 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/15164823159/bad-day-prenda-continues-judge-rejects-stay-adds-1k-per-day-each-day-they-dont-pay-up.shtml#c97 Everything on what not to do in one series of decisions.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/15164823159/bad-day-prenda-continues-judge-rejects-stay-adds-1k-per-day-each-day-they-dont-pay-up.shtml#c88 Tue, 21 May 2013 16:24:00 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/15164823159/bad-day-prenda-continues-judge-rejects-stay-adds-1k-per-day-each-day-they-dont-pay-up.shtml#c88 http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/14172323158/judge-not-impressed-prenda-alan-cooper-lawsuit.shtml#c371 Tue, 21 May 2013 16:21:44 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/14172323158/judge-not-impressed-prenda-alan-cooper-lawsuit.shtml#c371 http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/15164823159/bad-day-prenda-continues-judge-rejects-stay-adds-1k-per-day-each-day-they-dont-pay-up.shtml#c73 Tue, 21 May 2013 16:21:12 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/15164823159/bad-day-prenda-continues-judge-rejects-stay-adds-1k-per-day-each-day-they-dont-pay-up.shtml#c73 http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130517/13573923121/retired-lt-col-violent-media-has-bred-generation-killers.shtml#c1177 Tue, 21 May 2013 16:20:16 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130517/13573923121/retired-lt-col-violent-media-has-bred-generation-killers.shtml#c1177 http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/10401723156/if-you-think-you-should-actually-own-products-you-bought-now-would-be-good-time-to-call-congress.shtml#c1236 Tue, 21 May 2013 16:20:05 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/10401723156/if-you-think-you-should-actually-own-products-you-bought-now-would-be-good-time-to-call-congress.shtml#c1236 DMCA/1201 doesn't protect copyright. It protects DRM.

It protects DRM which protects copyright.

So you are talking about some non tangible potential of affecting copyrights, while you ignore that DMCA/1201 very concretely violates users ability to exercise fair use. Therefore dropping DMCA/1201 will restore concrete users' rights and will not really affect any copyrights.

It does indeed make it more difficult to engage certain types of fair use. But there is no RIGHT to fair use, only a privilege. So it doesn't violate your rights. It just makes it more difficult to exercise a privilege in certain ways (but not others).]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/14172323158/judge-not-impressed-prenda-alan-cooper-lawsuit.shtml#c349 Tue, 21 May 2013 16:19:57 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/14172323158/judge-not-impressed-prenda-alan-cooper-lawsuit.shtml#c349 http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/15164823159/bad-day-prenda-continues-judge-rejects-stay-adds-1k-per-day-each-day-they-dont-pay-up.shtml#c65 Tue, 21 May 2013 16:18:02 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/15164823159/bad-day-prenda-continues-judge-rejects-stay-adds-1k-per-day-each-day-they-dont-pay-up.shtml#c65 Cooper v. Prenda default hearing, and another event: today Judge Chen, who could become a second Wright, issued a strange order, which indicated that he bought Lutz's bullshit. I don't know what to think about it.. trying to be optimistic, I hope that his reasoning was something like "I have other stuff to do, and since there is a criminal investigation going on, let's not duplicate the efforts."]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130519/19190923142/if-youre-going-to-illegally-seize-citizens-cell-phones-least-make-sure-youre-grabbing-right-ones.shtml#c898 Tue, 21 May 2013 16:15:56 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130519/19190923142/if-youre-going-to-illegally-seize-citizens-cell-phones-least-make-sure-youre-grabbing-right-ones.shtml#c898 criminal histories. Melissa and Sulina Quair's convictions for welfare fraud are especially damning because they involve dishonesty.

Otoh, if forensic analysis of the cellphone can establish that a video did probably exist on Maria Melendez's cellphone, then we can look at when exactly it might have been deleted. And who might have deleted it.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/15164823159/bad-day-prenda-continues-judge-rejects-stay-adds-1k-per-day-each-day-they-dont-pay-up.shtml#c45 Tue, 21 May 2013 16:15:38 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/15164823159/bad-day-prenda-continues-judge-rejects-stay-adds-1k-per-day-each-day-they-dont-pay-up.shtml#c45
If you think that's a little beneath you, consider ordering Kevin Trudeau's book called free money. Just need your credit card. You'll like Kevin, you and he have a LOT in common.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/10401723156/if-you-think-you-should-actually-own-products-you-bought-now-would-be-good-time-to-call-congress.shtml#c1229 Tue, 21 May 2013 16:15:26 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/10401723156/if-you-think-you-should-actually-own-products-you-bought-now-would-be-good-time-to-call-congress.shtml#c1229 That AJ is pretending I said something I didn't, and then going on one of his trademarked temper tantrums, is priceless.

Where'd you run off to, Mike? Pretending like I'm having a "temper tantrum" so you can get out actually discussing your argument on the merits is your trademarked move. I know some of the dumber ones buy it, but wouldn't you rather just thrash me about on the merits? I'd love to chat with you about these things, but I suspect that, as you've done so many hundreds of times before, you're too chicken. I don't get it. I'm not that intimidating, am I?]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130517/13573923121/retired-lt-col-violent-media-has-bred-generation-killers.shtml#c1157 Tue, 21 May 2013 16:15:19 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130517/13573923121/retired-lt-col-violent-media-has-bred-generation-killers.shtml#c1157 http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130517/18345423136/doj-dept-education-to-colleges-start-restricting-free-speech-campus-kiss-your-federal-funding-goodbye.shtml#c1222 Tue, 21 May 2013 16:14:53 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130517/18345423136/doj-dept-education-to-colleges-start-restricting-free-speech-campus-kiss-your-federal-funding-goodbye.shtml#c1222 http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130517/18345423136/doj-dept-education-to-colleges-start-restricting-free-speech-campus-kiss-your-federal-funding-goodbye.shtml#c1214 Tue, 21 May 2013 16:14:19 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130517/18345423136/doj-dept-education-to-colleges-start-restricting-free-speech-campus-kiss-your-federal-funding-goodbye.shtml#c1214
That being said, the thing that always stands out to me in sexual harassment policies is the wording choice of "unwelcome". Now, it makes perfect sense, if you and your mate have an agreement between each other to send dirty pictures to each other, and nobody else is exposed to them, then there should be no problem there. The problem with the broadening of the definitions is that how do you find out if something is unwelcome to someone? If the definition becomes so broad, how to you even ask someone "hey, I've got this bit of porno I think you might like, do you want to see it?" Even that statement, under sufficiently broad definitions could be determined to be sexual harassment? The other person can't even be pro-active to you, under the same fear "I wouldn't mind if you showed me some porno"... nup, harassment there too.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130520/01450023148/makers-nutella-force-fan-who-created-world-nutella-day-to-shut-it-down-updated.shtml#c583 Tue, 21 May 2013 16:13:36 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130520/01450023148/makers-nutella-force-fan-who-created-world-nutella-day-to-shut-it-down-updated.shtml#c583
Communist!]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/10401723156/if-you-think-you-should-actually-own-products-you-bought-now-would-be-good-time-to-call-congress.shtml#c1208 Tue, 21 May 2013 16:12:36 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/10401723156/if-you-think-you-should-actually-own-products-you-bought-now-would-be-good-time-to-call-congress.shtml#c1208 Let me explain. The basic premise of your argument is wrong. You are saying that removing the anti-circumvention clause of the DMCA weakens the rights of copyright holders because removing the anti-circumvention clause weakens the rights of copyright holders. This is a logical fallacy known as "begging the question" (as opposed to the common use where it means creating a question). Repetition of your fallacy does not improve it's validity.

That's not what I said. The anticircumvention provisions strengthen copyright holders' rights by making it more difficult to circumvent access controls. Those access controls make it more difficult to infringe. By making it legal to traffic in these circumvention technologies, that in turn makes it easier to infringe.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/14172323158/judge-not-impressed-prenda-alan-cooper-lawsuit.shtml#c329 Tue, 21 May 2013 16:11:39 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130521/14172323158/judge-not-impressed-prenda-alan-cooper-lawsuit.shtml#c329