[Infowarrior] - USG Proposes Sweeping Exclusive Rights Regime for Internet

[Richard Forno]

http://www.cptech.org/blogs/wipocastingtreaty/

WIPO Casting Treaty

Thursday, August 03, 2006
US government proposes sweeping new IPR rules for Internet
by James Packard Love

Here is the new US submission on the "webcasting" issue, which
the US now wants to rename as "netcasting." The US does not offer
a restrictive definition of what would be protected. It is broad.
It offers a contradictary statement at the end. On the one hand,
it claims they only want protection for signal piracy -- an
approach that would not create a new intellectual property layer
for transmitting information on the Internet. On the other hand,
the US says: "the United States continues to believe that the
protection for netcasting should be the same as that provided for
traditional broadcasters and cablecasters." Anyone who actually
knows anything about the negotiations on this topics knows that
with 83 countries having already signed the Rome Convention
(which the US never signed, and does not follow), and with the
European Commission deeply dug in on this issue, any new treaty
for traditional broadcasting is expected to expand upon the
rights of the Rome convention. The US government will have to
decided, which of these two positions will be more important? To
protect "netcasting" the same as broadcasting (in Europe), or to
only protect netcasting from piracy? It appears as if AT&T has
pretty much steered the US government back into the backing of
"parity" between traditional broadcasting and netcasting, which
will be a disaster for the Internet, if this approach is
successful.

Completely ignored were any of our recommendations regarding the
definitions of protected content.  (http://www.cptech.org/blogs/
wipocastingtreaty/2006/07/definition-of-webcasting.html)

Here is the US submission:

SUBMISSION OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA TO THE WIPO STANDING
COMMITTEE ON COPYRIGHT AND RELATED RIGHTS

The United States is pleased to make this submission of proposed
definitions to cover broadcasting-like activities over computer
networks, together with an Explanatory Memorandum. This is the
third submission the United States has made to the Standing
Committee on Copyright and Related Rights on the protection of
the rights of broadcasting, cablecasting and webcasting
organizations. In October 2002, the United States submitted its
first proposal to this Committee (SCCR/8/7, October 21, 2002)
which set forth the initial position of the United States on this
issue. In June 2003, based on discussions within the prior
Standing Committee meetings, the United States submitted a
revised proposal (SCCR/9/4 Rev., May 1, 2003). Both of the
proposals submitted by the United States have been widely
discussed during subsequent meetings of the Standing Committee.
During the Fourteenth Session of the Standing Committee in May
2006, the Chair requested new proposals on the issue of
³webcasting² to be submitted by August 1, 2006. Since the May
Standing Committee meeting, in response to concerns and questions
raised at prior meetings and after further consideration of the
issues and discussions with interested parties, we have amended
our proposal to clarify the meaning and scope of the protection
for organizations which transmit signals over computer networks
in the same manner as broadcasters and cablecasters. We hope
these changes stimulate further discussion and facilitate
achieving a broader agreement on the objectives to be attained.

United States of America
Submission to the World Intellectual Property Organization
Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights

August 1, 2006

(a) "netcasting" means the transmission by wire or wireless
    means over a computer network, such as through Internet
    protocol or any successor protocol, for simultaneous or
    near-simultaneous reception by members of the public, at a
    time determined solely by the netcasting organization, of
    sounds or of images or of images and sounds or of the
    representation thereof,

    (1) that are of a program or programs consisting of pre-
        recorded, scheduled audio, visual or audiovisual
        content of the type that can be carried by the program-
        carrying signal of a broadcast or cablecast; or

    (2) that are of an organized live event transmitted
        concurrently where the organizer of such event has
        granted permission to transmit the event; or

    (3) that are also being cablecast or broadcast at the same
        time. If encrypted, such transmissions shall be
        considered netcasting where the means for decrypting
        are provided to the public by the netcasting
        organization or with its consent.

(b) "netcasting organization" means the legal entity that takes
    the initiative and has the responsibility for the assembly
    and scheduling of the content of netcasts.

Agreed statement concerning these definitions: The scope of the
definition of "netcasting" is intended to be limited to
transmissions over computer networks carrying programs consisting
of audio, visual or audio-visual content or representations
thereof which are of the type that can be, but are not
necessarily, carried by the program carrying signal of a
broadcast or cablecast, and which are delivered to the public in
a format similar to broadcasting or cablecasting. By its terms,
"netcasting" does not include merely providing access to audio or
video content that is not pre-recorded for purposes of
transmission via broadcast, cablecast or netcast.

Explanatory Note of Proposed Definitions

In response to the request from the Chair of the 14th Session of
the Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights, the
United States submits these proposed definitions to clarify the
scope of the protection for organizations which transmit signals
over computer networks in the same manner as broadcasters and
cablecasters. In proposing that the treaty cover "webcasting,"
the United States has never intended that protection be afforded
to the ordinary use of the Internet or World Wide Web, such as
through e-mail, blogs, websites and the like. We intended only to
cover programming and signals which are like traditional
broadcasting and cablecasting, i.e. simultaneous transmission of
scheduled programming for reception by the public. The proposed
definitions are intended to make that narrow scope more clear.

The proposed definitions use a new term, "netcasting," to
describe computer-based transmission of signals. This is intended
to avoid confusion with the old term "webcasting," which
unnecessarily implied that ordinary activity on the World Wide
Web would be covered by the definition. The substance of the
definition modifies the definition in the current draft proposal
by drawing from the definition of broadcasting over the Internet
as used in United Kingdom law protecting broadcasting
organizations.

With respect to the scope of protection and other provisions
applicable to netcasting, the United States continues to believe
that the protection for netcasting should be the same as that
provided for traditional broadcasters and cablecasters, and that
any such protection should be only what is necessary to protect
against signal piracy. To that end, we look forward to discussion
of the appropriate level of protection for netcasting with the
benefit of the discussions from the next meeting of the Standing
Committee that addresses traditional broadcasters.

---------------------------------
James Love, CPTech / www.cptech.org /
mailto:james.love at cptech.org /
tel. +1.202.332.2670 / mobile +1.202.361.3040

"If everyone thinks the same: No one thinks."  Bill Walton