Secret copyright treaty leaks. It's bad.

By GottaLaff

Um, anyone want to talk me down?

The internet chapter of the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement, a secret copyright treaty whose text Obama's administration refused to disclose due to "national security" concerns, has leaked. It's bad. It says:

* That ISPs have to proactively police copyright on user-contributed material. This means that it will be impossible to run a service like Flickr or YouTube or Blogger, since hiring enough lawyers to ensure that the mountain of material uploaded every second isn't infringing will exceed any hope of profitability.

* That ISPs have to cut off the Internet access of accused copyright infringers or face liability. This means that your entire family could be denied to the internet [...]

There's more. Read it here.

I'm no lawyer. Is this as bad as it sounds?

H/t: Jazzguyal

Aerosmith to House GOP: Don't Use Our Song + bonus VIDEO response to Eric Cantor!

By GottaLaff

Paddy posted the original video here.

Now we have a response:

Inspired by Eric Cantor, I made my own salute to the House Republicans for not voting for Obama's Stimulus Plan.

www.thatsrightnate.com

Oh, and guess what?

Cantor's clip has been pulled from YouTube after a copyright infringement claim made by Stage Three Music, which owns the rights to "Back in the Saddle."

The GOP's use of the tune "was something we, as the publishers, didn't approve and would not have approved without going to the writers," Connie Ashton, director of copyright and licensing at Stage Three, told me. "Aerosmith did not approve of its use and also wanted to have it taken down," she added.

Will these staunch, law-abiding, Amurka-lovin' Republicans never learn?

FOX News Sends Cease & Desist to McCain Web Operator

Tsk, tsk. That McCain camp isn't very good with copyright laws, now are they?

TVNewser has obtained a cease & desist letter sent by lawyers from Fox News Channel to AirNet Group Corporation, the company that hosts John McCain's campaign Website.

The copyright infringement notification stems from this ad currently playing on the McCain-Palin site. It includes grainy images and audio of reporting from Fox News correspondent Eric Shawn. The notification states, "Fox News requests that you immediately cease and desist from any further use of the copyrighted material and that access through the Website to the Material, and any other Fox News materials, be immediately disabled."