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The American Government, at the urging of the RIAA & MPAA, have finally forced Russion company Allofmp3.com to shut down. The Americans have browbeaten the Russian government enough that they have finally caved in and declared the site illegal, even though it complies with Russian law. Read the official looking statement here. Hit Read More for some interesting excerpts and a bunch of stuff I may, or may not, have made up. And puppies.
One of the key sticking points to Russia's acceptance into the WTO was what the US considered a substandard approach to protecting Intelectual Property Rights. In an effort to join the WTO, Russia agrees to the following: The agreement requires action on critical IPR issues, including:
• fighting optical disc piracy;
• fighting Internet piracy;
• protecting pharmaceutical test data;
• deterring piracy and counterfeiting through criminal penalties;
• strengthening border enforcement against piracy and counterfeiting;
• bringing Russia’s laws into compliance with the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of
Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS Agreement) and other international IPR standards; and
• continuing training and bilateral cooperation on IPR protection.
On fighting Internet piracy: Fighting Internet Piracy
• The United States and Russia agreed on the objective of shutting down websites that permit
illegal distribution of music and other copyright works. The agreement names the Russia-based
website allofmp3.com as an example of such a website.
• Russia will:
- take enforcement actions against the operation of Russia-based websites; and
- investigate and prosecute companies that illegally distribute copyright works on the Internet.
• Russia will work to enact legislation by June 1, 2007, to stop collecting societies from acting
without right holder consent,
• Russia will also work to enact legislation implementing the 1996 World Intellectual Property
Organization (WIPO) Internet treaties. IPR Enforcement in Russia
• The new agreement covers key areas cited in USTR’s April 2006 Special 301 Report, such as
optical disc and Internet piracy, and lack of data protection.
• Following release of the Special 301 Report, Russia has reported increasing numbers of
enforcement actions, including:
- more than 4,500 criminal cases for infringement of copyright or related rights in the first nine
months of 2006, compared to 2,924 in all of 2005;
- more than 1,600 convictions for copyright offenses in first the nine months of 2006,
compared to 1,450 convictions in all of 2005; and
- more than 500 criminal cases for trademark infringement in the first six months of 2006,
compared to 545 in all of 2005.
• Russia has provided information showing that through September, Russian authorities continue
their efforts on IPR enforcement, with raids at comparable levels to last year. We believe that
Russia is committed to more aggressive actions before the end of the year.
• The bilateral agreement calls for stronger enforcement. The U.S. Government will continue
working with stakeholders to closely monitor implementation of Russia’s commitments.
Sorry, no puppies. The MPAA has taken them all to turn them into cruel DVD sniffing dogs. Bastards.
Whole realms of music education are available at universities and online.
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