Matt
Take me down to the paradise city
Premium
join:2003-07-20
Jamestown, NC
 ·North State Commun..
|  It was a Linux ISO right?
said by article :
Waiting in my snail mail box for me was an unassuming letter from your favorite cable provider, and mine, Comcast. Contained in this letter was information pertaining to an alleged torrent download called “Cadillac Records.” I have come to learn that “Cadillac Records” is a movie with Adrien Brody and that their marketing for this movie must have really sucked because with what ever thousands or millions of dollars they used to promote this movie, I have never heard of it
I'm sorry, but without going all psychoanalysis on this quote, I don't believe this guy. If anything, I bet he was pissed because he thought it was "Batman.Returns.ZOMG.1080p.R0x0rzY0urB0x0rz.mkv" and he was fooled. He's way to defensive and quite the smug prick. Either that or he thought it was a Linux ISO. 
Regardless, I do think this process needs transparency and I don't think the copyright holders nor the service providers should be responsible for determining who has actually committed a violation. |
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tshirt
Premium,MVM
join:2004-07-11
Snohomish, WA
 ·Comcast
1 edit | said by Matt  : Regardless, I do think this process needs transparency and I don't think the copyright holders nor the service providers should be responsible for determining who has actually committed a violation. Actually the copyright holders are the ones to determine who MAY have violated their IP. and if they should defend their copyright.
(here's where the current process goes wrong
They should request user info from the ISP (who should refuse, due to customer privacy rights). The copyright holders then should begin a discovery process ( seek a "john Doe" warrant from a court to compel the ISP to release the info, as well as documentation/proof That the account holder was in fact in possession and control of the equipment at the time. The ISP could then release the info, and notify the customer that they had done so under court order.
The alternative would be for the copyright holders to provide a cease and desist letter which the ISP should be obligated to pass on Anonymously ie copyright holders do not receive customer info (According to the RIAA's most users if guilty, would stop at this point, no need to pursue it further)
All of this at the copyright holders expense (including court costs, comcast's expenses for forwarding the letter or providing documentation for any court processes) .
Only then could they return to civil court to pursue the ALLEGED violator.
The should not have any special power of subpoena, special rules of discovery, or other rights over and above those of a normal business pursuing a person who had in some way damaged/ misused, or misappropriated goods or services of that company.
Failures or errors in the discovery process, would of course open the way for countersuits againist the copyright holders and/or the ISP depending on where the error lay.
repeated abuse of the court process could open the way for fines againist those parties. |
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KrK
Heavy Artillery For The Little Guy
Premium
join:2000-01-17
Tulsa, OK
·AT&T Yahoo
·AT&T DSL Service
·Cox HSI
·AT&T Southwest
| reply to Matt
said by Matt :I'm sorry, but without going all psychoanalysis on this quote, I don't believe this guy. Didn't read further? He was 100% innocent. The Cable modem MAC address that Comcast used to identify him as the "Cadillac Records" torrent downloader had been previously returned to Comcast and redeployed to someone else.
Yet he got the Copyright violation notice.
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"Fascism should more properly be called corporatism because it is the merger of state and corporate power." -- Benito Mussolini
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hw
@myvzw.com
| reply to Matt
I'm sorry, but without going all psychoanalysis on this quote, I don't believe this guy. Believe it. I mean, HE might be BS'ing but I've had the same thing happen and I'm not joking. I got shut down like 4 months ago by Mediacom.. I WAS torrenting my ass off (and not using anything like IP blocklists, protocol encryption, etc.) so, yeah, I was really not too surprised. I didn't get a mailed notice but was told over the phone what it was for specifically. I got shut off again a month later, despite running absolutely no torrents (etc.) of any kind. I commented to the rep that I hadn't done anything, I guessed it crossed in the mail and they turned it back on. I didn't ask what it was for because I did assume it was just from earlier, but I wonder now. I got shut off AGAIN like 2 weeks ago, was supposed to be mailed some form and the notice of what it was about. This mail kept not showing up so I came into the office. They faxed a basically "Don't do it again" form (I guess it's REALLY "4 strikes"...) I signed it since it's worded pretty neutrally and canceled by internet service on the spot as well (I already have an aircard so the cable was mainly for umm, large files). When I got home my mail from them had FINALLY arrived.
The "infringement" was for wrestling.. I guarantee you I don't watch (or download, or more importantly upload..) wrestling. And the IP address was wrong, I have a wtmp log to prove it, going back about a month and a half.
I didn't go back in to find out if my OTHER shutoffs were even for me or not.. But it seems at least some cable co's are indeed mailing out mistaken notices.
I would not be surprised by the suggestion of problems due to tracking by cable modem MAC. I worked as a phone rep at a cable co once. I'm sure the billing systems vary a lot.. but on that one, let me tell you, putting the internet service billing code was easy. Putting the modem on the account, or exchanging one for another? Harder than it should have been. If someone was moving or had moved and wanted to move service? I'd just transfer the call, it was damn near impossible to not "lose" the modem in the system.
I don't think the copyright holders nor the service providers should be responsible for determining who has actually committed a violation. Well, OK but they will NOT have happy customers if they just start randomly cutting off people's connections, which they WILL do if they have broken IP-tracking systems. |
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Matt
Take me down to the paradise city
Premium
join:2003-07-20
Jamestown, NC
·North State Commun..
| reply to KrK
said by KrK :said by Matt :I'm sorry, but without going all psychoanalysis on this quote, I don't believe this guy. Didn't read further? He was 100% innocent. The Cable modem MAC address that Comcast used to identify him as the "Cadillac Records" torrent downloader had been previously returned to Comcast and redeployed to someone else. Yet he got the Copyright violation notice. I did read further, I even read his original blog post. I still don't believe him. |
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KrK
Heavy Artillery For The Little Guy
Premium
join:2000-01-17
Tulsa, OK
·AT&T Yahoo
·AT&T DSL Service
·Cox HSI
·AT&T Southwest
| said by Matt :I did read further, I even read his original blog post. I still don't believe him. So you don't believe Comcast screwed up?
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"Fascism should more properly be called corporatism because it is the merger of state and corporate power." -- Benito Mussolini
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