I know you could just hide your email address... or make up a fake one, but thats not the point.

http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=04/09/22/2037213

One word:

UNENFORCEABLE.

The text of this law: http://info.sen.ca.gov/pub/bill/sen/sb_1501-1550/sb_1506_bill_20040823_enrolled.html

I found it very interesting at the bottom how they threw in "school district" which caught my eye.

You don't think they're going to start suing kindergarteners now do you?

It follows a new trend in Washington and state capitols all across the country...unenforceable or unconstitutional laws that are pushed through for political purposes...with the knowledge that these laws are both unenforceable and unconstitutional. Passing the buck to the Supreme Court or future governments to repeal these silly laws or deal with the huge deficits being rolled up.

Doesn't everybody miss the hopeless gridlock of equally represented governments? Ahh, the good old days when they couldn't even agree if the sky was blue. Nowadays they still don't agree, but now you got a bunch of wackos in power who are forcing through edicts stating that the sky is red with white stripes and refusal to agree with abovesaid edict is punishable by a $100,000 fine or 3 years in jail.

Actually, maybe that shouldn't read a new trend. More like a new twist on an old wrinkle.

This appears to be a flaky law even for California. Is there something magical about the number 10? Why not 20? Or 50? And how are you supposed to know when you have shared a file 10 times? And how will THEY know when you have shared it 10 times? Looks like more work for MPAA lawyers to me. And it probably isn't constitutional, but the same could be said about the DMCA--and until it goes to the court, it will most likely be used as another scare tactic.

reading the law it also requires you to give your NAME and ADDRESS

now thats unconstitutional whether its aimed to stop copyrighted material or not. what if you want to distribute political media or something?

the whole point of freedom of speech is that you can do that anonymously! satire, leaked documents, etc!

whats the point of leaking documents that reveal shocking things about our governments if it can be traced who leaked them?

most systems (eg bittorrent) do not provide facility to give an address, so all somone has to do is log onto a torrent, collect all IP addresses in the California Ip address space (ie for california only ISPs and ISPs that have regional servers) and go for all those people.

it would effectively make bittorrent ILLEGAL in that area.

this sounds like it was pushed through by more than one "interested party"

I think the constitution has been abused in the past, for example when it allows telemarketer to call you during dinner time (talk about privacy invasion).

But in this case, it seems that this ridiculous law breaks it and that it's a warranted use (protecting people, not corporations that shouldn't have any constitutional rights anyway).

But anyway, this is unenforcable. If you don't know who the people are, how do you catch them. And if you know who they are, how do you claim they were anonymous...

Sen Kevin Murray is evil. He negotiated a backroom deal to trade off a silly useless accounting bill in excahnge for the RIAA and MPAA's wish list for piracy law. Don Henley and Irv Azoff are behind this. The Recording Artists Coalition did the benefit concerts and gave the money to Murray and also traitor Conyers of Michigan. Henley still doesn't even own a computer. This makes my blood boil. I would appreciate it if Congress critters would stop making laws about something in which they don't have an education.

Plenty of controversy and yelling at slash dot today!

This is from Murray's website.


SB 1506: Anti-Piracy
PROBLEM:

Current law requires individuals to publish their "true name and address" on a video movie, DVD or music CD being distributed to others so consumers know whether the copy is legitimate or counterfeited.

SOLUTION:

This law needs to be updated to include electronic dissemination. Senate Bill 1506 protects California consumers and its vital motion picture and music industries by extending to the Internet world the requirement that any commercial movie or sound recording file that is disseminated by an individual be labeled with his or her "email address."

The measure will also protect California's online consumers as well as safeguard the livelihood of the hundreds of thousands of workers inhabiting the entertainment industry in California by making crystal clear who is providing materials to those consumers and their children online.

The bill helps to prevent individuals from disseminating commercial works that are not their property and which they have no right to distribute, by creating a misdemeanor crime of a $2,500 fine and up to one year in jail. Minors who knowingly violate this crime would receive significantly lesser fines & penalties.

The bill protects the consumer’s right to know whether or not the movie or music files are legitimate or counterfeited, just like video movies and CDs when the "true name and address" was first enacted 20 years ago by the legislature.

SPONSOR:

Motion Picture Association of America.

I got news for these yoyo's. They can "demand" all they want. I don't give out my email address, anymore than I would give out my home address on the internet. I have had enough spam to last me a lifetime and till I learned how to do that it cost me 15 bucks to change email addresses everytime I dumped the spam connection.

If they think that registering at some site on the net is going to mean I gotta give those up they are nuts. I don't even give them out when filling out warrenties and the like. When you absolutely gotta register and give up an email addy, I use a service like spamhole. Works for an hour or so and then end of the line. So these folks think they are going to get me to give it up? lols.

I don't live in California, I don't pay taxes in California and I am certainly not represented in California. Their state law is not valid in my or anyone elses case that lives outside their state borders, no matter how bad the content cartel wants to make it easy for themselves. This law is wishful thinking and the same trend is reflected in what our lawmakers are doing on the hill.

Caught a glimse of a news commentator on tv last night. Sort of opened the ears when I heard the statement, "That Americans should hold their lawmakers responcible for those that pass bad laws." The subject dealt with illegal emmigrent workers and some laws that were being attempted to be passed over those same workers being able to apply for social security in the US. That the attempt was a closed door, almost secret atttempt to slide it through and would most likely be sucessful.

Point of this is, isn't just the content cartel that is getting these sweetheart deals. Our representation is rotten to the core and stinks. Laws are open to the highest bidder and devil take the hindmost. The ones really suffering here are the American people. About the only time you hear the phrase "representing the people" is election time. Well, we should remind them of that as election time is just around the corner.

I suppose we'll next have people of Jewish descent being forced to identify themselves in E-mails with a Star of David, or homosexuals being compelled to type a pink triangle (just as a few examples), if this trend keeps up.

Fine! Now I will be boycotting the movie industry as well! Moreover I will be downloading and sharring as many movies I can hold on my HD!
RIAA Harnolie and MPAA try to catch me and let's see what's hapen to you if you succeed!

W-B, unrelated issues.

You will see more of this to come. Enjoy your freedom while you can.

Baghdad Bush

Current law requires individuals to publish their "true name and address" on a video movie, DVD or music CD being distributed to others so consumers know whether the copy is legitimate or counterfeited.
The measure will also protect California's on line consumers. Let's protect retail consumers also with their name address and phone numbers of the people who made the dvd's and cd's to know if it's counterfeit or not.

Look..they actually ELECTED "Ahnold", as Gubernator...'Nuff said about the Left Coast!

I agree with Baghdad Bush (great name by the way)

I agree with Baghdad Bush as well. King George the Cowardly covets our rights. He says they Iraqi terrorists hate us for our freedoms, so, his plan is to take us away our freedoms, and therefore, nothing to hate us for!

Defeat W...W stands for WRONG!
=CowardlyKingGeorge=

If we don't get rid of the ones that are in office now we are sure to have more of these kind of laws.

Hey CodeWarrior Glad you like the name I just got back on to this place. You know me as gilbd

Not Baghdad Bob anymore
Now Baghdad Bush

sure i'll give an email address. johndoe@hotmail.com hehehehe. will it be registered to me? nope. all they are doing is forcing the p2p groups into using encrypted files. i think this is a good idea. the gov't has no business seeing what you are doing anyway.

Murray is actually the senator in my district. It's OK, nobody in my family voted for him and I sure as hell won't next election.

yea cali is in debit
this will never be enforced
anonimity is a right reguardless
of what california law states
we didnt get full legal pot
and the riaa/mpaa wont get
what they want either
theres just no way we have the finances for that kind of enforcement
mathematically impossile
if not, just superiorly impossible
the chances of anyone following or enforcing these laws
1 in 5,000,000,000
whith the deficet we have in law enforcement and schools
theyre wasting money just passingthese bills which woud only be vetoed later by the supreme court

We The People find Arnold GUILTY of crimes against humanity.

Let's hope the courts have some sanity in regards to all these assults on our rights/freedoms and declares them unconstitutional before we all realize that we are glad the assult weapon ban has expired.

I am so PISSED OFF right now I could spit!

Shmoo

Support Local and Independent Music!
(But don't do it in California or you will end up in jail...)

I read the bill and it looks like it has several loopholes. Here's one:

"to knowingly
electronically disseminate all or substantially all of that commercial recording or audiovisual work."

It would appear that if you don't offer ALL or SUBSTANTIALLY ALL of the recording you're OK.

One must also KNOW that it's a commercial work. Don't tell, don't ask!!!

It's only for residents of California, so outside Cali and you're good. It also expires in 2010, which means it's law for 6 years, unless extended.

Well, I guess a new worm or virus will be created to scour and steal people's e-mail addresses.

And like capt-n-jack said, offer it in bits and pieces.