Blog Report

The main purpose of this blog was to track the changes to New Zealand’s copyright laws, relating specifically to the introduction of legislation designed to curtail piracy on the internet.  The coverage was in no way as comprehensive as it should have been, especially from the end of October 2009.   However it was an attempt to provide some background on the proposed copyright law changes and follow the legislative processes and debate around the new copyright laws in New Zealand.

‘© kiwiright’ a short Doco on NZ copyright law

This is a twelve minute documentary (as the description states) ”about how copyright laws have been contorted to benefit the financial needs of corporate rights holders and no longer benefits the public nor the artists who create the work itself.”  The doco cuts between interviews with New Zealand lawmakers and technologists to a remix of Disney clips used to define and comment on copyright law.  Politician Peter Dunne, Bronwyn Holloway-Smith from the Creative Freedom Foundation and  Tech Journalist Juha Saarinen discuss the problems with the proposed copyright law,  specifically Section 92a.  The connection between free trade with the US and  changing New Zealand copyright law is identified as one of the reasons the government has moved in this direction.

‘Target’ put to the test

TV3’s consumer watchdog show Target received a fair bit of criticism for a piece on piracy and illegal downloading in Episode 1039. (WATCH IT)  The Creative Freedom Foundation of NZ called “Shame On You” Target for presenting one side of the online copyright infringement debate.

Top Shelf Productions, the makers of Target, showed just one side of the argument and left many unchallenged viewpoints and statistics from NZFACT or RIANZ. Target became little more than a press release for these lobby groups, and our response follows...”

Fair Use, the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement & Digital Music

 

ABOVE Fair Use explained through a Disney parody.  Created by Professor Eric Faden of Bucknell University.  The Centre for Internet and Society

Mark Harris of the Creative Freedom Foundation talks about the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement on RNZ’s  Saturday Morning with Kim Hill PODCAST

Steve Knopper talks to Simon Morton (PODCAST) about his book “Appetite for Destruction: the spectacular crash of the record industry in the digital age“. (Read review by the Los Angeles Times)

‘Us Now’ doco: Gov 2.0?

(watch more in READ MORE below)
 
Us Now is a British documentary which looks at and online networks and the self-governing structures which make them possible.  The premise is that that we can all be the government and top-down bureaucratic structures will be eventually replaced.  The potential of social networks, new technologies and the internet generally, the type of participation demonstrated in the examples used,  it is claimed could change the way way countries are governed.  The film uses several examples to argue the point: opensource software Linux OS,   CouchSurfing,  mums helping each other on Mumsnet, loans from people not banks at Zopa.  Slicethepie, a platform enabling music artists to get financing from fans, who can also earn money from reviewing and promoting.  The fans of EbbsFleet United who own, manage and pick the players of their football team.  Access to technology, I thought was neglected from the discusssion.  If the means of production was to change (in the ways suggested)  surely everyone would need to have access? What do you think? Leave a comment.

NewZbie Video: The Chatham Islands

Footage from my recent trip to The Chatham Islands accompanied by the sounds of Schille.M.  The trip was sponsored by the Prostate Cancer Foundation of New Zealand.  READ the story on prostate cancer awareness in the Chatham Islands.    

A good part of the time on the island was spent driving around the main island which is much bigger than you might imagine.

Watch in HQ on YouTube.

Outsourcing to Google

Are you dependant on Google to peform work you brain would normally carry out?  Have you outsourced tasks like spelling remembering: important dates, events, history, names etc. to Google? Do you have withdrawal symptoms when you cannot access the search engine?  Do you google questions you already know the answers to?  You are not alone

Cisco internal marketing analysis video: Product Placement Reel

Reported on Wikileaks on September 15, 2009.

“Commercial film and TV are now paid henchmen in the battle to subconciously maniplate the minds of viewers into unwitting respect for selected corporations and their products.

Want proof? Look no futher than this Cisco internal marketing analysis video showing placement of the Cisco name in an extraordinary array of films and TV series…” READ MORE

WikiLeaks – whistleblowing

Check out WikiLeaks, a forum where important documents and information not seen by the public can be shared anonymously online.  WikiLeaks main goal is to expose oppressive regimes around the world and also to  reveal unethical behaviour in governments and institutions by offering a space for journalists, bloggers, dissidents and whistleblowers to leak information they believe the world should know about.  

 ”Wikileaks is an uncensorable version of Wikipedia for untraceable mass document leaking and analysis. It combines the protection and anonymity of cutting-edge cryptographic technologies with the transparency and simplicity of a wiki interface.”

 Behind Wikileaks are: journalists, representatives from refugee communities, ethics and anti-corruption campaigners, including a former national head of Transparency International, human rights campaigners, lawyers and cryptographers.  There are 1,200 registered volunteers with the site asking for more people to volunteer.

Wikileaks is a multi-jurisdictional organization to protect internal dissidents, whistleblowers, journalists and bloggers who face legal or other threats related to publishing. Our primary interest is in exposing oppressive regimes in Asia, the former Soviet bloc, Sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East, but we are of assistance to people of all nations who wish to reveal unethical behavior in their governments and corporations. We aim for maximum political impact. We have received over 1.2 million documents so far from dissident communities and anonymous sources.”

UK Pirate Party more popular than the UK Labour Party on FB

 

 

 

 

 

After officially registering as a political party last month the Pirate Party UK now has more supporters than the incumbent Labour Party on Facebook. Compare: The Labour Party on Facebook to the Pirate Party UK on Facebook   READ MORE from FreakBits.  This may not come as a suprise to many as the demographic for filesharing is over-represented on Facebook.  Younger people are often accused of being apathetic and disengaged when it comes to politics.  Is this just a passing phase or a pendulum shift towards political engagement?