Editor Charlie

The Coming Crisis: #SayNoToZoe on CASE Act Threats

September 17, 2019 Editor Charlie Leave a comment

The new copyright small claims court legislation (The CASE Act) passed the House Judiciary Committee, but not without thuggery from Rep. Zoe Lofgren and the Internet Association. Chris Castle narrates the issues and proposes a solution for Big Tech’s “Senate strategy” that inevitably includes Senator Ron Wyden, the grifter from Oregon and proud father of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. Lofgren’s threat comes about 8:27:00 on the YouTube video here.

Internet Association Statement on CASE Act

Michael Beckerman

Ron Wyden’s Teachable Moment: Should one Senator be allowed to stop 415 Members of Congress on the Pre-72 Fix

Did a Wyden Campaign Donor Fund Hedge Fund Operated Out of Senator’s Basement?

Are Data Centers The New Cornhusker Kickback and the Facebook Fakeout?

The Mother’s Milk of Algorithms: Google Expands Its Data Center Lobbying Footprint in Minnesota–Home to Senator Amy Klobuchar

ACLU takes a gratuitous swipe at the Copyright Office using a Google “study” to allege bias. ACLU Statement on CASE Act

See: ACLU Gets $700,000 from Google Buzz Award musictechpolicy.com/2011/10/31/the-…r-the-company”/

ACLU Helps EFF With DMCA Delaying Tactics musictechpolicy.com/2010/07/07/aclu…laying-tactics/

ACLU Cribs from Google Lobbyists on Pro-Piracy Letter to Congress musictechpolicy.com/2016/05/04/why-…ns-from-google/

aclu cy pres

Tags: CASE Act, Rep. from Google, Senator Data Center

@musictechpolicy Podcast: Eight Mile Style Sues Spotify Under Music Modernization Act

August 30, 2019 Editor Charlie Comments off

Chris Castle discussion of Eight Mile Style lawsuit against Spotify under Music Modernization Act (driving with dogs series)

Eight Mile Style v. Spotify Complaint

Meet the New Boss: Tech Giants Rely on Loopholes to Avoid Paying Statutory Royalties with Mass Filings of NOIs at the Copyright Office

Tags: Eight Mile Style litigation, Music Modernization Act, Reachback Safe Harbor

How to Contact the Court in PledgeMusic Case–The Trichordist

August 3, 2019 Editor Charlie Comments off

PledgeMusic had posted this information on their website when we checked today:

As a result of the making of the order, the Official Receiver becomes liquidator of the company. Any enquiries should be forwarded to LondonB.OR@insolvency.gov.uk, quoting reference LQD5671373.

We gather that what that means is that if you are (1) an artist who is owed money by PledgeMusic, (2) a fan who gave money to an artist who you think did not receive your money from PledgeMusic, or (3) a vendor who didn’t get paid because PledgeMusic didn’t pay your artist, then you should write to that email address which we assume is for the “Official Receiver” who is now in charge of running the case. (OK, that does sound like a character out of Harry Potter, but that’s how it is.)

We also assume because Pledge didn’t say that there is a deadline for submitting your claim there probably is one. That’s probably why PledgeMusic didn’t say what the deadline was, a fact they almost certainly know very well. Because if you fail to get your claim in on time, there’s more for them in the pot. Ponzi to the very end.

You should take legal advice about what you should say and how to handle it, but if you can’t afford a lawyer you could say in your email that you think you are owed money, how much and why, and ask them what you should do about it. It probably wouldn’t hurt to tell them what you have done to try to collect your money from Pledge and the approximate or exact dates you tried to get their attention.

And be sure to tell the Official Receiver if you think Pledge breached its obligations to you or otherwise did you wrong, threatened you, or any other bad stuff.

The Official Receiver probably frequently deals with people who are owed money and have no lawyer so don’t be shy about it. The Insolvency Service (who actually appoints the Official Receiver) also responded to Chris Castle on Twitter:

Insolvency Service 1

We will keep you posted with more information as we find out.

Tags: Official Receiver, PledgeMusic

What’s the Current Status of PledgeMusic Case?

July 22, 2019 Editor Charlie Comments off

What are the chances that PledgeMusic will just disappear into the night, never file bankruptcy and never pay back the artists, fans and vendors? The less you talk about Pledge’s misdeeds, the more likely they simply are never pursued by anyone.

Tags: PledgeMusic

Must Read by @davidclowery: Google Doxx: Google Funded Groups in 2017 Illegal Doxxing of FCC Chairman — The Trichordist

July 13, 2019 Editor Charlie Comments off

Editors note #1 – Over the last year, this blog has been reporting on Google’s apparent use of proxies in an attempt to intimidate members of the EU parliament into voting against the proposed EU Copyright Directive. The Copyright Directive requires social media platforms above a certain size to do more to counter copyright infringement […]

via Google Doxx: Google Funded Groups in 2017 Illegal Doxxing of FCC Chairman — The Trichordist

Tags: David Lowery, Google Shills

The Countdown to Modernity: Copyright Royalty Board Posts Notices and Rules for MLC Assessment Proceeding — Artist Rights Watch

July 7, 2019 Editor Charlie Comments off

Since there was no advance commitment or agreement on the budget for the Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC) under Title I of the Music Modernization Act, it appears that the clock is ticking on an agreement before the parties have to go before the Copyright Royalty Judges to be told what the budget (or the “assessment”) is to be. The Copyright Royalty Board has beat the July 8 deadline for noticing the proceeding and has posted the notice and the rules for the hearing.

The “Notice announcing commencement of Initial Administrative Assessment proceeding and requesting Petitions to Participate” can be found here:

The regulations require the participation of the MLC and the Digital Licensee Coordinator (DLC) in the proceeding and permit the participation of copyright owners, digital music providers, and significant nonblanket licensees. 37 CFR 355.2(c)–(d).

The Judges hereby announce commencement of the proceeding, direct the MLC and the DLC to file Petitions to Participate, and request Petitions to Participate from any other eligible participant with a significant interest in the determination of the Initial Administrative Assessment…

Any participant that is an individual may represent herself or himself. All other participants must be represented by counsel….

Petitions to Participate and the filing fee are due on or before July 23, 2019.

The CRJ’s rules relating to the proceeding can be found here and have some relevant language relating to who can participate in addition to the MLC and DLC:

[T]he Judges believe that the views of other participants may be helpful, and perhaps essential, for the Judges to determine whether good cause exists to exercise their discretion to reject a settlement. The Judges, therefore, have modified [the regulations for the settlement negotiations and proceeding] to clarify that participants other than the MLC and DLC may participate in settlement negotiations and may comment on any resulting settlement.

via The Countdown to Modernity: Copyright Royalty Board Posts Notices and Rules for MLC Assessment Proceeding — Artist Rights Watch