Telecoms Package - European Parliament Bill

[I. Kant]

Here was a post maybe too emotional. This is a rewrite. I want to keep it as objective as I can manage.

Telecoms package - what do you know about it?

Whether or not you can answer the above question, I'd encourage you to take a look at these links:

OFFICIAL:
Euro-parliament's final draft agenda. Once there, click on the small MS Word icon in the top-right corner to get the full version. Page 12, agenda for the 5th of May. Proposed reading of the draft of the bill, voting scheduled for the 12th of May.

The information in the agenda refers to a final draft of a Malcolm Harbour document, which can be obtained (or - it looks like it - a part of it can be obtained) here.

UNOFFICIAL (someone'd say 'fear-mongering'):

http://www.iptegrity.com/

http://blackouteu.wordpress.com/

Whether or not these sites are run by the sort of liminal people you'd class as 'whackos', or not, you decide.

[Also, here's a collection of the official links, some additional one's included:
http://delicious.com/n2j3/blackouteu ]

If you feel like doing anything with the situation at hand, why not give your Euro MP a call? Or at least an e-mail?

http://www.laquadrature.net/wiki/MEPs_by_country

Therein you'll find the necessary contact information.

Thoughts?

 

[Murphy]

I heard about this concept a while ago but I didn't think it would go anywhere. Let's hope they can't push it through.

 

[Fu. Svedberg]

With incitiaments like this EU is moving internet to becoming more and more like cable TV, you'll just watch what the companies want when they want.

Good bye freedom on the internet

 

[Marquis24]

Did they get the idea from the US telecoms when they tried it a couple of years back? Its because of games and sites like this that I have been able to learn the most about other countries and cultures just by socializing with people that have similar interests. Where else can I play a game with people from Germany, Russia, Sweden, Poland, the UK, ect. at the same time? I am able to keep up on the world news not just the short bits and pieces the US media gives out because they dont think its a big deal and want to talk about hollywood gossip crap for a hour. I hope the European Parliment realizes how counter-productive the telecoms are for trying to do this.

 

[I. Kant]

Well, the claim is that it's to stop piracy. I'm all for it, okay. But that could turn into killing two birds with one stone.

Suppose the sites you frequent don't make it into the standard package? You'd have to pay for them.
It also could seriously undermine the competitive edge of internet businesses - if it culls the number of people who can freely access their sites.

Well, after having actually read the above linked materials (the official EU ones, that is) I can say that there isn't anything explicitly frightening, but then again, it might be hidden between the lines. The fragment I linked to is also only that - a fragment, and on a press conference they held about it, they kept referring to a certain article 46, which I cannot find in the text I have. Well, the conference - they really tried to placate people and quiet any panic that may have begun. We'll live and see. Chances are that we'll also pay for this, one way or the other.

The press conference: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/eplive/expert/multimedia/20090423MLT54351/media_20090423MLT54351.asf

 

[Hunt3r.j2]

Best to keep the internet free. I don't think that regulating that you can only see specific websites would be a good idea. If they really want to they can just establish a blacklist on their servers.

Then again, if no one else followed suit then they'd drop this "Oh pirating is bad because it destroys profits." It doesn't destroy profits. It's loss of potential profits, and little of it anyhow. A bit like saying that having a copy of a video game being lent to your friend would be loss of potential profit. Even if the MP is locked up and your friend really really wants to play the MP.

The companies will get profit regardless of any amount of piracy. To reduce it just make it cheap enough that most can afford it. I don't want to pay a dollar for ONE song. I would pay a quarter to 75 cents.

Then again, I'm just an overweight cheeseburger-eating roadsign-shooting yank.

 

[Kenza]

I got tons of links about this, but sadly all of them are in swedish as most of them are related to the swedish pirate party