Aussie Pirate Bay Blocking Process Begins in Federal Court

Foxtel and the movie distribution division of Village Roadshow appeared in Federal Court today in the first legal action in Australia aimed at blocking pirate sites. Their targets include The Pirate Bay, Torrentz, isoHunt, TorrentHound and SolarMovie but due to existence of dozens of proxies, mirrors and clones, the process is far from straightforward.

Source: TF, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, torrent sites and ANONYMOUS VPN services.

stop-blockedIn common with other countries around the world, Australia envisions a multi-point process to tackle the issue of online piracy.

The first was a so-called “three strikes” warning scheme that would see regular Internet users monitored by anti-piracy companies and then sent escalating warning notices by their respective ISPs. After years in the planning the system was found to be too expensive and has now been shelved.

In parallel, copyright holders have sought to have pirate sites blocked at the ISP level and after new legislation was passed last year, the process was expected to become more streamlined. Today the first cases landed in Federal Court to test out the system for the first time.

Two industry players are leading the charge, with Roadshow Films (the movie division of Village Roadshow) and TV giant Foxtel both seeking to have several pirate sites blocked at the ISP level. The latter wants to render The Pirate Bay, Torrentz, isoHunt and TorrentHound inaccessible in Australia while the former is targeting streaming portal Solarmovie.

Perhaps needless to say, things haven’t been as straightforward as the entertainment companies might have liked.

Part of the blocking process requires that the copyright holders contact the sites in question to inform them that an application has been made. However, due to the existence of dozens of mirrors, clones and proxies (which only exist due to blocking action in other regions) that process has been both labored and fruitless.

Representing both Foxtel and Roadshow is veteran piracy case lawyer Richard Lancaster who also represented iiNet in the long-running and recently ended case against Dallas Buyers Club.

Lancaster told the Court that more than sixty sites need to be addressed to block the handful of key domains in the action yet only two-thirds of them have been reachable by letter. None of the sites responded.

“[For some of the sites] there’s no obvious or indeed unobvious mechanism for getting in touch with the operators of the sites, but we have sent notification letters out to 43 of the 61 domain names that have been identified in the pleadings,” he said.

Also at issue is proving to the Court that the sites being targeted have a primary purpose to infringe copyright. According to counsel for the applicants, that will be achieved by providing screenshots of each of the domains being targeted.

However, since there is zero chance of the owners of the sites turning up to defend themselves, there will be no adversarial process over what the Court is shown.

Furthermore, none of the 50 ISPs cited as parties in the case will mount a defense against the applications so barring any unforeseen circumstances the blocks will eventually become reality. Nevertheless, there are technical issues to be ironed out and some of those were aired in Court today.

For their part the ISPs would like to block the sites in question by interfering with their DNS systems but it appears that Foxtel and Roadshow Films would prefer the blocking of URLs and IP addresses. Additionally, Foxtel would like to add more IP addresses if sites seek to evade a block, which could be a problem with at least one ISP.

“We wish to seek to negotiate an arrangement for DNS blocking. If [Foxtel] were pushing for a broader blocking mechanism that might be an issue,” said counsel for Internet provider TPG.

While agreement will eventually be reached, both sides acknowledged the need for these first two cases to be dealt with in a manner that will build an efficient and cost-effective framework for future applications.

“This will be the first of several proceedings, and we really want to establish best practice from the outset,” counsel for ISP Optus said.

“We are concerned and ISPs are concerned that the orders in this case provide a template for the future,” Foxtel’s counsel added.

“We expect that will be done by careful consideration in the proceedings and by an eye for efficiency in future proceedings.”

The next date of note is May 6, when the copyright holders and ISPs return to Court having attempted to iron out their differences on the technicalities of blocking. That is surely only a matter of time and perseverance.

When the blocks are eventually put in place, future visitors to blocked sites will be greeted by a special landing page that will inform them of the existence of a court order. Those landing pages will be hosted by the studios so they will be able to track the number of visitors to the site and even their IP addresses.

Source: TF, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, torrent sites and ANONYMOUS VPN services.

Entwicklerszene: Neue Wege für Animationen

Bei Animationen in Spielen stehe ein Umbruch bevor, sagt Kristjan Zadziuk von Ubisoft Toronto. Er erklärt die Grundzüge des neuen Systems – und die technischen Probleme. (GDC 2016, Ubisoft)

Bei Animationen in Spielen stehe ein Umbruch bevor, sagt Kristjan Zadziuk von Ubisoft Toronto. Er erklärt die Grundzüge des neuen Systems - und die technischen Probleme. (GDC 2016, Ubisoft)

The Division im Test: Die Guten müssen die Bösen sein

Als Agent einer zutiefst geheimen Spezialorganisation bringen Spieler in The Division als rechtschaffene Helden wieder Recht und Ordnung ins virenverseuchte New York. Den größten Reiz entfaltet das Spiel aber, sobald die Guten in der Dark Zone selbst zu den Bösen werden. (The Division, MMORPG)

Als Agent einer zutiefst geheimen Spezialorganisation bringen Spieler in The Division als rechtschaffene Helden wieder Recht und Ordnung ins virenverseuchte New York. Den größten Reiz entfaltet das Spiel aber, sobald die Guten in der Dark Zone selbst zu den Bösen werden. (The Division, MMORPG)

Bosch: Smart Home in Rund

Bosch will im Smart-Home-Markt vor allem seine Synergien mit anderen Unternehmensteilen des Konzerns nutzen, um den Kunden eine runde und leicht zu installierende Lösung anzubieten – bis hin zu intelligenten Haushaltsgeräten. Auch Philips’ Hue-System wird unterstützt. Die Preise sind jedoch hoch. (Smart Home, Technologie)

Bosch will im Smart-Home-Markt vor allem seine Synergien mit anderen Unternehmensteilen des Konzerns nutzen, um den Kunden eine runde und leicht zu installierende Lösung anzubieten - bis hin zu intelligenten Haushaltsgeräten. Auch Philips' Hue-System wird unterstützt. Die Preise sind jedoch hoch. (Smart Home, Technologie)

Schwarmkonzept: Sechs Roboterameisen ziehen tonnenschweren Geländewagen

Sechs Roboterameisen, die gerade einmal 100 Gramm wiegen, haben in einem Versuch einen Stadtgeländewagen abgeschleppt. Durch Teamwork gelang es den kleinen Metallameisen, das 1,8 Tonnen schwere Gefährt zu bewegen. (Roboter, Technologie)

Sechs Roboterameisen, die gerade einmal 100 Gramm wiegen, haben in einem Versuch einen Stadtgeländewagen abgeschleppt. Durch Teamwork gelang es den kleinen Metallameisen, das 1,8 Tonnen schwere Gefährt zu bewegen. (Roboter, Technologie)

Passwortersatz: Amazon plant Bezahlen per Selfie

Amazon will ein Selfie zur Verifikation eines Bezahlvorgangs nutzen und Passwörter überflüssig machen. So sieht es die Idee eines Patentantrags vor, mit der das Bezahlen einfacher funktionieren soll. (Passwort, Amazon)

Amazon will ein Selfie zur Verifikation eines Bezahlvorgangs nutzen und Passwörter überflüssig machen. So sieht es die Idee eines Patentantrags vor, mit der das Bezahlen einfacher funktionieren soll. (Passwort, Amazon)

Taxi-Konkurrenz: BMW soll Mitfahrdienst wie Uber planen

BMW will ein europäisches Uber aufbauen und damit Taxis Konkurrenz machen. Doch statt Privatautos sollen die Fahrer ihrerseits die Carsharing-Fahrzeuge von BMW nutzen und weitere Passagiere mitnehmen. BMW will damit Uber in Deutschland zuvorkommen, die zu einem zweiten Versuch ausholen könnten. (BMW, Auto)

BMW will ein europäisches Uber aufbauen und damit Taxis Konkurrenz machen. Doch statt Privatautos sollen die Fahrer ihrerseits die Carsharing-Fahrzeuge von BMW nutzen und weitere Passagiere mitnehmen. BMW will damit Uber in Deutschland zuvorkommen, die zu einem zweiten Versuch ausholen könnten. (BMW, Auto)

Controversial ‘Screening Room’ Asks for $50 to Watch New Release Movies at Home

A new digital movie platform that aims to bring the latest movies to people’s homes the same day as it screens in theaters has now attracted plenty of big name backers, as well as numerous detractors.The platform, called Screening Room, is backed by Ho…



A new digital movie platform that aims to bring the latest movies to people's homes the same day as it screens in theaters has now attracted plenty of big name backers, as well as numerous detractors.

The platform, called Screening Room, is backed by Hollywood heavyweights including Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, Peter Jackson and JJ Abrams, will give movie lovers a chance to watch the latest theatrical releases in the comfort of their own homes, using a proprietary secure set-top-box.

But the platform has already attracted scores of criticism, from not only users who have balked at the idea of paying $50 per movie (plus $150 for the set-top-box), but also cinema chains afraid of losing their exclusivity window.

To sweeten the deal for the likes of AMC and Regal, Screening Room plans to cut cinema chains as much as $20 for every movie being rented, as well as including two tickets for the user to watch the movie at theaters, to help bolster theater concession sales.

With such a generous offer, it is reported that a deal with AMC may be close, but others like Regal are standing firm against this perceived encroachment into their business model.

Movie studio executives also warned about the potential damage this would cause to cinema chains. "It would be the beginning of the end, and half of the theaters in this country would close," said an unnamed studio executive.

In a further ironic twist, Screening Room is currently being promoted around Hollywood by none other than Napster's Sean Parker, previously the poster boy for not paying for content, who now want users to pay a little bit more than they're willing.

Qualcomm: Das Snapdragon Virtual Reality SDK kommt

Für Gear VR ist er bereits verfügbar, dennoch: Der Snapdragon 820 erhält ein dediziertes Virtual Reality SDK. So will Qualcomm es Entwicklern einfacher machen, bessere VR-Inhalte zu erstellen. (Snapdragon, GreenIT)

Für Gear VR ist er bereits verfügbar, dennoch: Der Snapdragon 820 erhält ein dediziertes Virtual Reality SDK. So will Qualcomm es Entwicklern einfacher machen, bessere VR-Inhalte zu erstellen. (Snapdragon, GreenIT)

EU-Digitalkommissar: Mehr Zusammenarbeit bei Technik und Gesetzgebung nötig

EU-Kommissar Günther Oettinger hat die Initiativen der EU für die Digitalwirtschaft gelobt: Die bisherigen Bestrebungen gehen ihm aber nicht weit genug – auch beim Pro oder Contra von Geoblocking. (Günther Oettinger, Internet)

EU-Kommissar Günther Oettinger hat die Initiativen der EU für die Digitalwirtschaft gelobt: Die bisherigen Bestrebungen gehen ihm aber nicht weit genug - auch beim Pro oder Contra von Geoblocking. (Günther Oettinger, Internet)