http://www.techdirt.com/ Easily digestible tech news.... http://www.techdirt.com/blog/innovation/articles/20130619/01031623524/more-details-emerge-as-states-attorneys-general-seek-to-hold-back-innovation-internet.shtml#c352 Thu, 20 Jun 2013 03:30:13 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/blog/innovation/articles/20130619/01031623524/more-details-emerge-as-states-attorneys-general-seek-to-hold-back-innovation-internet.shtml#c352 Service providers, even if a mere free-to-use physical bulletin board, DO in fact have SOME degree of responsibility to police their area.

While true, said policing goes hand-in-hand with the notion that a service provider can]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130618/16530423522/arizona-court-skeptical-medical-excuse-prenda-lawyers.shtml#c222 Thu, 20 Jun 2013 03:28:15 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130618/16530423522/arizona-court-skeptical-medical-excuse-prenda-lawyers.shtml#c222
I think this is the reason Mr. Harris has been so vehement in his demand they reveal how they got his information, because it would open a much larger can of worms and set 2 Judges in 2 District upon them.

I await my external brain SJD to arrive and confirm I am remembering correctly.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/blog/wireless/articles/20130604/21150823320/help-explain-why-phone-unlocking-is-important-to-you-why-it-should-be-legal.shtml#c1995 Thu, 20 Jun 2013 03:25:28 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/blog/wireless/articles/20130604/21150823320/help-explain-why-phone-unlocking-is-important-to-you-why-it-should-be-legal.shtml#c1995
I'd say that's enough. Once they sign the paperwork, the phone belongs to them, and they can do any damn thing they want with it. They're already on the hook if they break it, so they've got the responsibilities of ownership. They should also get the benefits.

And then if they try to cheat their phone provider, well, there are tons of legal remedies available.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/blog/innovation/articles/20130619/01031623524/more-details-emerge-as-states-attorneys-general-seek-to-hold-back-innovation-internet.shtml#c329 Thu, 20 Jun 2013 03:22:49 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/blog/innovation/articles/20130619/01031623524/more-details-emerge-as-states-attorneys-general-seek-to-hold-back-innovation-internet.shtml#c329
Spent so much time
Not looking for an answer
But someone else to blame
As long as you don't take the drop
To you it's all the same]]> http://www.techdirt.com/blog/wireless/articles/20130604/21150823320/help-explain-why-phone-unlocking-is-important-to-you-why-it-should-be-legal.shtml#c1966 Thu, 20 Jun 2013 03:20:50 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/blog/wireless/articles/20130604/21150823320/help-explain-why-phone-unlocking-is-important-to-you-why-it-should-be-legal.shtml#c1966
I thought this was a fairly ridiculous price, and a law requiring that phones be fully unlocked would have meant I could have spent far less.

Now, it's gotten better since I bought my Galaxy Nexus, as you can now get equivalent unlocked phones for $400 direct from Google, but that's still about $200 or $250 too much. Even cheapies should be easily portable. Note that I do NOT mean subsidized phones; those only look cheap. I mean the actual cheapies, the ones you can buy for $100 to $150, should be usable with any carrier using that technology.

Note that simply allowing unlocks is not enough, because at least with AT&T and T-Mobile, the phones they sell themselves will be deliberately crippled, so as not to work well on their competitors' frequencies. I'm not sure this legislation can be modified to fix that problem, but if it's in scope, it's something Congress should be thinking about.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130619/13581923535/microsoft-capitulates-removes-online-drm-xbox-one.shtml#c1105 Thu, 20 Jun 2013 03:08:27 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130619/13581923535/microsoft-capitulates-removes-online-drm-xbox-one.shtml#c1105 http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130613/18243923466/hollywoods-new-talking-point-gatekeepers-are-awesome.shtml#c982 Thu, 20 Jun 2013 02:56:21 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130613/18243923466/hollywoods-new-talking-point-gatekeepers-are-awesome.shtml#c982 http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130606/04315023339/pianist-storms-off-stage-claims-fans-filming-his-performance-mean-record-labels-wont-give-him-contract.shtml#c828 Thu, 20 Jun 2013 02:39:48 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130606/04315023339/pianist-storms-off-stage-claims-fans-filming-his-performance-mean-record-labels-wont-give-him-contract.shtml#c828 http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130620/00581223542/ftc-planning-to-go-after-patent-trolls.shtml#c20 Thu, 20 Jun 2013 02:37:07 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130620/00581223542/ftc-planning-to-go-after-patent-trolls.shtml#c20
It seems it now isn't about invention and buying patents to make your product better, it is more off add to your patents to game you chances in settlements with threat of a lawsuit.

While this is a great step there are a lot else that could be done to alleviate the plaque of patent trolls. The patent office needs to be cleaned up and the rules and regs on patent approval need to be revamped.

Otherwise there are far too many shady lawyers and companies who will keep gaming the system to achieve large settlements while abusing the patent system.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130619/13581923535/microsoft-capitulates-removes-online-drm-xbox-one.shtml#c1085 Thu, 20 Jun 2013 02:34:16 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130619/13581923535/microsoft-capitulates-removes-online-drm-xbox-one.shtml#c1085 http://www.techdirt.com/blog/innovation/articles/20130619/10395523531/next-time-someone-says-twitter-is-killing-deep-thinking-with-short-quick-messages-show-them-this.shtml#c501 Thu, 20 Jun 2013 02:17:34 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/blog/innovation/articles/20130619/10395523531/next-time-someone-says-twitter-is-killing-deep-thinking-with-short-quick-messages-show-them-this.shtml#c501
Eastern Europe has various flavours of Orthodox Christianity - you know, the bit where the Roman Empire survived until the 1450s.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130619/13581923535/microsoft-capitulates-removes-online-drm-xbox-one.shtml#c1073 Thu, 20 Jun 2013 02:14:33 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130619/13581923535/microsoft-capitulates-removes-online-drm-xbox-one.shtml#c1073
Bringing us right here: will the lack of region locking allow us to use blu ray discs from any region in the PS4? Is that part of the Non Region locked promisse?]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130619/13581923535/microsoft-capitulates-removes-online-drm-xbox-one.shtml#c1065 Thu, 20 Jun 2013 01:55:19 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130619/13581923535/microsoft-capitulates-removes-online-drm-xbox-one.shtml#c1065
Its funny how the reestruration plan from Sony, who put the chairs of the Games division on the control is called ONE SONY, and then their main competitor goes ahead and calls their product awkwardly XBOX ONE.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130619/09064523528/germanys-spies-have-nsa-envy-working-their-own-comprehensive-snooping-system.shtml#c106 Thu, 20 Jun 2013 01:51:52 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130619/09064523528/germanys-spies-have-nsa-envy-working-their-own-comprehensive-snooping-system.shtml#c106 http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130619/07515923527/leaseweb-deletes-megauploads-servers-without-warning-destroying-key-evidence.shtml#c1071 Thu, 20 Jun 2013 01:47:18 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130619/07515923527/leaseweb-deletes-megauploads-servers-without-warning-destroying-key-evidence.shtml#c1071 http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130619/13581923535/microsoft-capitulates-removes-online-drm-xbox-one.shtml#c1055 Thu, 20 Jun 2013 01:40:28 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130619/13581923535/microsoft-capitulates-removes-online-drm-xbox-one.shtml#c1055
I could buy this idea more (and don't get me wrong this is something we do see a lot) if Microsoft had done it at their E3 press conference. But they didn't, this seems far more reactionary as a result. I don't think Microsoft would have wasted this press coverage, took a beating on stock prices, handed the narrative over to Sony and took a beating in the eyes of the non-informed gaming public just to sell people on a type of DRM that is, effectively, already widely accepted in services like steam.

Microsoft wanted this, invested in this, expected it to work and had one of the worst console announcements ever as a result.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/blog/innovation/articles/20130619/01031623524/more-details-emerge-as-states-attorneys-general-seek-to-hold-back-innovation-internet.shtml#c328 Thu, 20 Jun 2013 01:40:24 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/blog/innovation/articles/20130619/01031623524/more-details-emerge-as-states-attorneys-general-seek-to-hold-back-innovation-internet.shtml#c328
Fixed that for you. Your side didn't see any threat in file sharing until you realised you could use it to bilk the public. Then it was "piracy", needing new laws to allow you to extort innocent people.

A large amount of the innovations your industries use online, you didn't pay for or tried to stop without just cause, but now you expect the profits you mistakenly think you deserve.

"...grifters who don't trade value for value."

You speak of yourself, it cannot be denied.]]> http://www.techdirt.com/blog/innovation/articles/20130619/01031623524/more-details-emerge-as-states-attorneys-general-seek-to-hold-back-innovation-internet.shtml#c323 Thu, 20 Jun 2013 01:31:02 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/blog/innovation/articles/20130619/01031623524/more-details-emerge-as-states-attorneys-general-seek-to-hold-back-innovation-internet.shtml#c323 http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130618/16530423522/arizona-court-skeptical-medical-excuse-prenda-lawyers.shtml#c213 Thu, 20 Jun 2013 01:29:27 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130618/16530423522/arizona-court-skeptical-medical-excuse-prenda-lawyers.shtml#c213 http://www.techdirt.com/blog/innovation/articles/20130619/10395523531/next-time-someone-says-twitter-is-killing-deep-thinking-with-short-quick-messages-show-them-this.shtml#c499 Thu, 20 Jun 2013 01:28:34 PDT http://www.techdirt.com/blog/innovation/articles/20130619/10395523531/next-time-someone-says-twitter-is-killing-deep-thinking-with-short-quick-messages-show-them-this.shtml#c499 they thought the same of the people who came before them.

A hundred years from now there will be someone like you, separated from us by thought time and language who will be cherry picking the best and brightest and bemoaning how we no longer talk or think in such ways. You called other people here arrogant for disagreeing with you but the fact is that people are people and there are more people than ever and alive right now are exactly the kind of people that you, born a hundred years from now, would hero worship while ignoring the fact that such people are around you right now thinking great thoughts, producing great works of endless creativity.]]>