Wednesday, March 7, 2007

U.S. Senators Pressure Canada on Canadian DMCA. U.S. Senators Pressure Canada on Canadian DMCA. An anonymous reader writes  "The U.S. copyright lobby brought out some heavy artillery last week as it continued to pressure Canada to introduce a Canadian DMCA. U.S. Ambassador to Canada David Wilkins gave a public talk in which he described Canadian copyright law as the weakest in the G7, while Senators Dianne Feinstein and John Cornyn wrote to Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper to urge him to bring in movie piracy legislation."  [Slashdot] 12:49:09 PM

Stations agree on anti-payola settlement | Houston Chronicle Radio listeners weary of hearing the same songs over and over may have something to cheer about: Broadcasters have tentatively agreed to anti-payola settlements that could shake up music playlists at some of the nation's largest radio chains. Four major broadcast companies would pay the government $12.5 million and provide 8,400 half-hour segments of free airtime for independent record labels and local artists, The Associated Press has learned. The agreement is aimed at curbing payola -- generally defined as radio stations accepting cash or other consideration from record companies in exchange for airplay. The practice has been around as long as the radio industry and was made illegal after scandals in the late 1950s. Two Federal Communications Commission officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because final language has not been approved by the full commission, said the monetary settlement is part of a consent decree between the FCC and Clear Channel Communications Inc., CBS Radio, Entercom Communications Corp. and Citadel Broadcasting Corp. The settlement was reached at the same time as a separate deal designed to lead to more airtime for smaller record companies and their lesser-known artists as well as local musicians. 12:17:54 PM

Major Broadcasters Hit With $12M Payola Fine. Major Broadcasters Hit With $12M Payola Fine. Gr8Apes writes with a just-breaking AP story reporting that the FCC is wrapping up a settlement in which four major broadcast companies would pay the government $12.5 million and provide 8,400 half-hour segments of free airtime for independent record labels and local artists. The finish line is near after a 3-year investigation. An indie promoter is quoted: "It's absolutely the most historic agreement that the independent community has had with radio. Without a doubt, nothing else comes close." [Slashdot] 12:15:47 PM

Nightline NSA Spy Exclusive: Dud. Nightline NSA Spy Exclusive: Dud. AT&T whistleblower Mark Klein breaks silence to tell ABC News' Nightline about the NSA eavesdropping on the internet, but reveals little new information. In 27B Stroke 6. [Wired News: Top Stories] 12:07:37 PM

Wal-Mart fires technician who recorded phone calls March 05, 2007   (Reuters) -- CHICAGO - Wal-Mart Stores Inc. said today it fired a systems technician for intercepting text messages of people who were not Wal-Mart employees and for recording telephone conversations with a New York Times reporter without authorization. Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer, said an internal investigation found the technician had monitored and recorded phone calls between Wal-Mart public relations employees and a New York Times Co. reporter between September and January. The Bentonville, Ark.-based retailer also said the technician, who worked in its information systems division, intercepted and stored text messages that contained certain key words, including those sent by people in the Bentonville area who were not Wal-Mart employees. Wal-Mart spokeswoman Mona Williams said on a call with reporters that the technician "did this on his own." While interviews with the technician gave the retailer an idea as to why he recorded the calls, Williams said she could not disclose the reasons because the case has been turned over to federal investigators. 11:52:20 AM

Texas House exempts courthouse clerks from privacy laws. Texas House exempts courthouse clerks from privacy laws. The Texas House of Representatives has approved a bill that would allow local courthouse clerks to disclose "in the ordinary course of business" Social Security numbers contained in public records maintained by their offices. Computerworld Privacy News] 11:43:07 AM

© Copyright 2007 Paul Hardwick. Last update: 3/18/07; 7:43:51 PM.