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Thread: Sony BMG found to be using pirated software

  1. #1
    IdolEyes787's Avatar Persona non grata
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    RECORD label Sony BMG, one of the most vocal and ferocious opponents of music piracy, has been accused of using unlawfully installed programs on its computers by a small software company.

    French company PointDev, which makes applications for Microsoft Windows, claims to have discovered pirated versions of its software installed on Sony BMG computers and is suing the label for €300,000 ($514,910).

    PointDev said it was alerted to the illegal software after a Sony BMG employee rang the software company's technical support number for assistance and gave a pirated product key when asked for a customer number, French website 01net reported.

    A raid on the French offices of Sony BMG in January revealed that almost half of the software used by the company may be unlawfully installed, according to the report.

    The story was first reported in English by file-sharing website ZeroPaid and has since done the rounds on technology blogs, where authors and readers jumped to point out the irony of Sony BMG being sued for piracy.

    The record label has become infamous among the online community for its zealous pursuit of people accused of illegally sharing music. It has brought or threatened up to 26,000 lawsuits against individuals, according to media and marketing website MediaPost.

    In 2005, Sony BMG caused a security scare by using a malicious form of digital rights management (DRM) on certain discs sold in the US. Sony suspended this form of DRM shortly after Microsoft defined it as "spyware", or spying software.

    Sony BMG is one of the “big four” record labels that fund anti-piracy watchdogs the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI). Earlier this year, the IFPI was forced to cut costs under pressure from major record labels.

    Local watchdog Music Industry Piracy Investigations (MIPI) says about 18 per cent of Australia's population are involved in illegally trading songs by email or peer-to-peer file transfers. Sony BMG Australia did not respond to a request for comment on the PointDev lawsuit.


    Source: http://www.news.com.au/technology/st...014108,00.html
    Last edited by Hairbautt; 04-18-2008 at 04:08 PM.

  2. News (Archive)   -   #2
    BANNED BT Rep: +8BT Rep +8
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    lmao

  3. News (Archive)   -   #3
    TheFoX's Avatar www.arsebook.com
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    The main difference between SonyBMG and the average Joe is that SonyBMG can afford to pay the €300,000 demanded, whereas the fines issued to Joes are way beyond affordability.

    Ironic that SonyBMG can afford to pay such an award by simply fining some more Joes and making a profit.

    It's like the factory worker and a professional footballer being fined for drink driving. The worker may need to work six months to pay the fine whereas the footballer will pay the fine with 10 minutes spent on the pitch.

    I think awards should be in line with the earnings of the defendant. After all, why try to force someone on social benefit to pay something they could never hope to pay, while fining the rich the equivalent of drinking money.

    After all, the €300,000 award that PointDev seeks from SonyBMG would hardly even be felt by the giant. If you don't hit them hard enough, how can you instil a lesson that piracy is not tolerated.

    Or do the piracy laws only apply to the consumer...
    Quote Originally Posted by OlegL
    You are one of the nicest and most mature people on this board; I would never ignore someone like you.

  4. News (Archive)   -   #4
    Ironic

  5. News (Archive)   -   #5
    BANNED BT Rep: +8BT Rep +8
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    Quote Originally Posted by TheFoX View Post
    The main difference between SonyBMG and the average Joe is that SonyBMG can afford to pay the €300,000 demanded, whereas the fines issued to Joes are way beyond affordability.

    Ironic that SonyBMG can afford to pay such an award by simply fining some more Joes and making a profit.

    It's like the factory worker and a professional footballer being fined for drink driving. The worker may need to work six months to pay the fine whereas the footballer will pay the fine with 10 minutes spent on the pitch.

    I think awards should be in line with the earnings of the defendant. After all, why try to force someone on social benefit to pay something they could never hope to pay, while fining the rich the equivalent of drinking money.

    After all, the €300,000 award that PointDev seeks from SonyBMG would hardly even be felt by the giant. If you don't hit them hard enough, how can you instil a lesson that piracy is not tolerated.

    Or do the piracy laws only apply to the consumer...
    yes, in this case is true, because sony sued people for the same reason

  6. News (Archive)   -   #6
    colbert's Avatar Poster BT Rep: +1
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    Quote Originally Posted by TheFoX View Post

    Ironic that SonyBMG can afford to pay such an award by simply fining some more Joes and making a profit...

    The RIAA suing of people is not a money making operation. It takes a lot of time and money to find alleged infringers, a lot more than they get out of the settlements.

  7. News (Archive)   -   #7
    TheFoX's Avatar www.arsebook.com
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    Quote Originally Posted by colbert View Post

    The RIAA suing of people is not a money making operation. It takes a lot of time and money to find alleged infringers, a lot more than they get out of the settlements.

    Ever so sorry there, chum, but no one takes a civil action against someone else without the preamble that they will recover their costs and be awarded compensation, should they prove their case.

    In law, the first thing a lawyer will do is to see if litigation is feasible, and whether it is worth proceeding. After all, no one likes throwing money at a losing scenario.

    As for your statement that it takes more money to track down offenders than they recover in costs, once again a business will not venture willingly into loss making venture. After all, the stockholders want to make money, not lose it, and they would not back an initiative that sees their dividends diminish, regardless of the moral rights or wrongs of sharing.

    Just remember that one of the big four is already deciding whether pursuing filesharers using the RIAA is financially viable, and may end up reducing their contribution to the RIAA.

    To stand on a pedestal and preach to the unwashed is one thing, but to waste money preaching to the unwashed is something else. These corporations want to make money, and if the long term vision shows that legal action is having little or no effect, then they will change tactics so something more profitable (like infiltration and contamination, which they successfully did on Kazaa).
    Quote Originally Posted by OlegL
    You are one of the nicest and most mature people on this board; I would never ignore someone like you.

  8. News (Archive)   -   #8
    IceCube
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    Hey cool! Thanks for posting the story Idol.

    If anyone is interested in the report on ZeroPaid, it's found here.

    I got someone to do a proper translation on the original English report and it turns out that the whole 'Half of Sony's software is pirated' thing was actually the result of a faulty translation. The issue, of course, is now fixed. It really meant that the BSA said that 47% of software used in a corporate environment is pirated. However, the raid revealed pirated software on four of their servers nevertheless.

    I also noted that when La Province (another French news site) asked for comment, a spokesperson begged the reporter not to report on the story. Yay for the French paper reporting on it anyway.

    This story is still the funniest story of the year in my books. Was surprised it wasn't making it's rounds earlier when I spotted it the first time.

  9. News (Archive)   -   #9
    Not surprising

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