Kazaa Blocks Australian Users 145
afaik_ianal writes "The Sydney Morning herald is reporting that Kazaa is blocking Australian downloads of their client, just a day after the deadline passed for implementing keyword filters. According to the article, Shaman networks were still working on installing the filters yesterday."
It's kind of funny... (Score:5, Funny)
Re:It's kind of funny... (Score:5, Insightful)
> everyone but citizens of their own country...
What's new? The government in Canberra has been doing it for ages...
Re:It's kind of funny... (Score:1, Redundant)
Re:It's kind of funny... (Score:1)
Then the proles can keep an eye on them
Re:It's kind of funny... (Score:3, Funny)
Re:It's kind of funny... (Score:5, Informative)
Sharman Networks was registered in Vanuatu in January 2002 as a private company that markets and owns Kazaa.
Kazaa includes Kazaa Media Desktop, kazaa.com and kazza.n et.
Sharman Networks has nil authorised capital and two ordinary issued shares.
The shareholders are two companies: Global Nominees and Credit Facilities Limited.
The beneficial owne rs are Vanuatu International Trust Company Ltd as a trustee for the Sharman Trust.
Sharman License Holdings is 100 per cent owned by Sharman Networks, and the beneficial owner is Sharman Trust.
Worldwide Nominees is the director of Sharman Networks and Sharman License Holdings.
Worldwide Nominees is owned by Global Nominees and Credit Facilities Limited. The director is Geoffrey Gee and Regent Limited. Geoffrey Gee is a Vanuatu-based solicitor.
The beneficial owner is Trustees International Limited as trustee for Golden Sands Trust.
Global Nominees is a Vanuatuan company, the beneficial owners of which are the partners of Vanuatu accounting firm, BDO.
Credit Facilities Limited, which is one of the nominal shareholders of the shares in Sharman Networks, is similarly a BDO company.
Lindsay Barrett is a partner of BDO in Vanuatu. He's also director of Vanuatu International Trust Company, VITCO.
VITCO is the trustee of the Sharman Trust and owner of the whole of the issued capital of Sharman Networks Limited.
The nominated eligible beneficiaries as defined in the trust deed are the International Red Cross.
The International Red Cross claims to have never been contacted about this. Nikki Hemming is listed as "director" of VITCO, which is the beneficial shareholder of the Sharman companies located in Vanuatu.
Sharman operates in Australia via LEF Interactive.
LEF is an Australian registered private proprietary limited company. Sole director is Nicola Anne Hemming, whose only property asset has been sold to Sharman accountant John Simon Myer.
LEF has paid up capital of $1.00.
If you can set up this sort of company structure and understand it, you deserve to live in a multi million dollar mansion.
Now I cant remember what your question was but I hope my answer clears it up for you...
Re:It's kind of funny... (Score:1, Interesting)
By the way, like, 3 people will be pissed off by this slow and painful death of kazza.
Re:It's kind of funny... (Score:2)
Dead? Hardly. Fake-file, porn-, virus-filled? Maybe. But it appears that a lot of people still use it and swea
Re:It's kind of funny... (Score:2)
Re:It really ISN'T FUNNY (Score:2, Informative)
why listen? (Score:1)
Re:why listen? (Score:5, Interesting)
From Wikipedia:
Consumer Empowerment responded by selling the Kazaa application to a complicated mesh of offshore companies, primarily Sharman Networks, headquartered in Australia
So actually, yes they are based in the AU. So yes, they kinda do have to follow rulings made by Australian courts.
Re:why listen? (Score:1)
If I was being sceptical I would say that they were perfectly able to impliment the key word filtering but want to keep the network alive for anyone else around the world who uses it (if anyone still does, thought Kazaa died years ago)
Re:why listen? (Score:2)
No, they are... (Score:2)
-everphilski-
Re:why listen? (Score:1)
Except, they are.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sharman_Networks [wikipedia.org]
Re:why listen? (Score:1)
So. (Score:5, Funny)
Oblig (Score:4, Funny)
Re:So. (Score:2, Funny)
Re:So. (Score:1)
LATE BREAKING NEWS (Score:5, Funny)
people still use that?
Alexa Traffic Rank = 3951 (Score:2)
Traffic Rank for kazaa.com: 3,951
That's pretty high I guess.
Though that doesn't mean everyone who visits their site downloads Kazaa. The high rank can also be attibuted to malware/zombie pcs.
Re:Alexa Traffic Rank = 3951 (Score:1)
Re:Alexa Traffic Rank = 3951 (Score:2)
If I ever released a worm that put a P2P client on every zombie PC, and listened for 24 hours and got the top hundred list of common search terms on whatever P2P network, then downloaded it (to reshare), I could easily 1) infect with worm, 2) ???, 3) PROFIT!!!
The cat is out of the bag, P2P is here to stay, I don't care how deeply you inspect my packets. The internet and it's users will always be one step ahead of EVERYTHING. Adapt or die!
Re:LATE BREAKING NEWS (Score:4, Insightful)
Myself, I couldn't see myself trusting any company or application like this. Seems like every time I have to fix someone's computer, it's because of shit they got from kazaa or whatever.
On the other hand, people keep smoking.
Re:LATE BREAKING NEWS (Score:2)
Can anyone tell me (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Can anyone tell me (Score:1)
Irrelevant (Score:5, Insightful)
Decentralization is key to survival now if you want to avoid litigation on the infrastructure.
Re:Irrelevant -- reasons for trash heap (Score:5, Insightful)
Kazaa has been relegated to the trash-heap of the net because it's laden with spyware, has an ineffective hashing system that has allowed it to become more polluted by OverPeer and its ilk than any other P2P system (in excess of 50% of the files on KaZaA are damaged, in excess of 90% for some very new releases), hasn't been updated in 3 years, and gathers more lawsuits of users than all other P2P systems combined.
Re:Irrelevant -- reasons for trash heap (Score:2)
Bandwidth is increasing and becoming cheaper. There is nothing they can do to stop the black market of overpriced goods.
Re:Irrelevant (Score:3, Informative)
And besides, the open source has nothing to do with it. The open protocol is what will keep BT alive, if anything.
Shaman or Sharman (Score:1)
Re:Shaman or Sharman (Score:5, Funny)
Bit misleading? (Score:3, Informative)
I wonder... (Score:1)
Time vs Money (Score:5, Insightful)
Ultimately, the death of pirating shareware is going to be governed by the pricepoint more than anything else. Sure, free is always cheaper, but if you can get the music at the right price (and I certainly think allofmp3.com has got it!) then that's going to be a major player.
(And yes, I know there are questions about the legality of the service. But so far it's stood up the legal challenges presented, and it's got to be "more" legal than filesharing, right? :) Not that that matters twojots to the RIAA I guess :)
"More" legal? (Score:3, Insightful)
Not necessarily. According to an IP trace, that site is based in Russia. They're selling songs for a fraction of the going rate here, and if they don't have an agreement with the labels, they probably aren't paying the labels anything for it. (I don't know that for a fact.)
*IF* these guys have stolen the music and are s
Re:"More" legal? (Score:5, Interesting)
As for the paying/not paying thing, artists (of major lables) get virtually zip from CD sales; I figure at least this way, the albums I buy are making it to the Top 10 on this site, which then encourages more people to buy them, etc, which ultimately results in more listeners and hopefully bigger sales at concerts, where they make their real money. Of course, this doesn't work out so well for the Labels (and hence the sustainability of the current industry model) but that's all for the better we might start to see some shake up.
Anyway, I rarely buy new music - it's mainly jazz I'm after, and the occasional soundtrack.
Money made at concerts... (Score:2)
They do this because they feel that they do well enough on sales alone, and don't want to price their shows out of reach of some of their fans. Also, merchandise isn't sold at rip-off prices.
Mind you, said example is an exception to the rule of concert pric
Re:"More" legal? (Score:3, Informative)
The grey area is whether they have the right to sell it to us folk over the seas. If it were CDs, then there's no law against importing a CD
You can't legally import a CD for resale in the U.S. if the exclusive U.S. distribution rights to that CD have been purchased by/granted to a company. Same goes for books. If, say, a record label in Brazil (or Belgium or Belize, etc.) makes a deal with a record label in the U.S., giving the latter U.S. distribution rights, then it would not be legal for a U.S. sto
Re:"More" legal? (Score:1)
Re:"More" legal? (Score:5, Informative)
That's correct - except that AllofMP3 isn't importing anything. They're exporting from Russia. Importing anything into the USA requires a legal entity here, in the States!
I can legally buy something from a mail-order catalog from Brazil and have them ship it directly to my house, if I desire it, for personal use. They aren't breaking any laws, and neither am I.
So, AllofMP3 isn't importing anything at all, they're selling items over the Internet to whomever wants to buy it under Russian law, apparently in full compliance with the letter of Russian law. What's more, US copyright law specifically allows imports of copyrighted materials from oversees when purchased for personal use, when such materials are sold in compliance with the foreign jurisdiction, even when foreign laws conflict with US law!
IANAL, but it seems pretty bullet-resistant to me. And, it's damned convenient...
Re:"More" legal? (Score:2)
Everything is legally fine on the Russian side, but there is still a question on the US side, because when you receive the data you generally create a copy on your harddrive. Creating a copy does fall under the perview of US copyright law.
Whether making that copy is legal or not... well that is a very very messy legal question. If ANYONE (ot
Re:"More" legal? (Score:2)
IANAL, but it seems pretty bullet-resistant to me. And, it's damned convenient...
Heh, and I thought MP3.com was pretty bullet-resistant also, and look what happened.
I don't think it's a question of personal liability. I can't imagine anyone being sued over purchasing music from AllofMP3.com. Worst-case scenario would be having one's hard drive confiscated. (Like, if you bought a bootleg CD in a store right at the moment when the authorities rushed in and arrested the store owners/managers for traff
Re:"More" legal? (Score:2)
For resale, perhaps. But if you're just buying it for yourself you should be okay.
Re:"More" legal? (Score:5, Insightful)
Whereas if you pay iTunes for it, you're supporting THIER mafia-like tactics.
Thank the gods for cdbaby.com
Re:"More" legal? (Score:2)
Now THAT we can agree on.
http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/nathanlong [cdbaby.com]
Re:"More" legal? (Score:1)
Re:"More" legal? (Score:2)
Re:"More" legal? (Score:2)
Itune to CDBaby to Me (Score:2)
Re:"More" legal? (Score:2)
My understanding is that they don't have an agreement with the labels, but that they are paying them. Just like here in the US there is a standard fee for covers (I don't really know how it works, but someone described it that you can send in a default fee to cover a song), there is a default fee they pay per song there. They are collect
Re:"More" legal? (Score:1)
Quality King Distributors Inc., v. L'anza Research International Inc. (1998, WL 9625)
This decision supports the right to import copyrighted material that you purchased overseas, whether the copyright holder gives you permission to or not.
Allofmp3 is legal and it drives the RIAA crazy. Fuck em.
Re:Time vs Money (Score:3, Insightful)
I don't think there will ever be such a thing as the death of filesharing, licit or otherwise. I agree, however, that extremely low price points and faster-to-market than pirates (which seems rarely the case) will wipe out the bulk of illicit filesharing. Further, I think publishing companies stand to make even more money through bulk than they do right now. If we could d
Re:Time vs Money (Score:2)
A similar example is my local video store which now offers all videos, including new releases, for $3 (ain't competition grand?) That makes it more convenient for me to just go and rent the video than to find it and download it, or even copy it o
Nobody will care (Score:5, Insightful)
That being said, few people are still using it. Nobody will care. Those that do care, can now move on to a better client/network.
Re:Nobody will care (Score:2)
Remember that download is legal in many countries, OTOH upload is not.
Where to find single mp3s? (Score:1)
Re:Where to find single mp3s? (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Where to find single mp3s? (Score:2, Interesting)
You can use Bittorrent for individual songs as well. Most Bittorrent clients these days allow you to view the files within the torrent itself, and either rank them in priority, or choose to not download them at all.
So, all you have to do is find a .torrent of the album that the song you want is from, open the .torrent, and set all the files to not download, except for the one(s) that you want. Of course, this won't work if the .torrent contains a .zip, .rar, or another archive file with the songs inside.
Re:Where to find single mp3s? (Score:1)
Not that I download music from BitTorrent. That's illegal.
Re:Where to find single mp3s? (Score:2)
Re:Where to find single mp3s? (Score:2)
Pay for them?
Import them from Russia?
My install log (Score:2, Funny)
[2:15]Ok Iv disabled anti-spyware and I am installing it again.
[2:20]Just finished insntalling #ddffh@4(*(&^#*&%*&%^&^%76#$*7$%[CARRIER DISCONNECTED]
Re:My install log (Score:2)
Find another way to get Kazaa (Score:2, Funny)
It's also an improvement (Score:4, Funny)
P2P Profit Model Changing (Score:4, Insightful)
Instead, companies should develope and release the software for free, into the wild, and create a profitable market using the network itself. It's time for a really creative person to figure out how to release a lasting P2P client/network and make a profit from it in a really untraditional way.
Like utilising all the traffic to build models for what people are searching for. Selling the information to marketers. Letting people sell content through P2P networks, whatever. I'm not the one to create the next fix for P2P, but it is out there, and I'll be the first one to use it.
Re:P2P Profit Model Changing (Score:1)
Re:P2P Profit Model Changing (Score:1)
(Note, these aren't my opinions, I have nothing against people making money, indeed I hope to make some myself someday)
Multichoice test (Score:5, Insightful)
a) CD Stores
b) The next, better, faster, more anonymous filesharing system
What do you think?
Nerf Shaman! (Score:1)
kazaa was so yesterday, mate. (Score:1)
Ka-what? (Score:2, Funny)
Of course... in reality I long since moved out of mothers basement, she died, and so did Kazaa. I'm still overweight, hairy, horny and sweaty, but nowadays I use the ed2k and bittorrent protocols for filet
Re:Ka-what? (Score:1)
If you had the guts to stand for your opinions I might have been tempted to be insulted by you calling me an american, but... you're apparently not worth the effo
Legal Download/Upload Map (Score:2)
AFAIK, download is legal in France, upload is illegal
Please state for other countries.
Oh my god! (Score:1)
Re:That's okay (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:That's okay (Score:4, Funny)
This IS slashdot after all.
Re:That's okay (Score:5, Funny)
Re:That's okay (Score:2, Funny)
Re:That's okay (Score:2)
wheras [curvedspaces.com] THIS [zompist.com] is closer to it
Re:That's okay (Score:2)
Re: C. D. III (Score:1)
What have you got against Crocodile Dundee III?
I know that it wasn't as good as the first two, but it was all right.
I confess that I felt a pang of pity for Ol' Croc, what with never being able to see his kid again (well at least until C. D. V: The Vegemite Strikes Back), and being confined forever in that life-support suit, in which it must get uncomfortably hot while searching for droids in the
Re:And then there was none (Score:1)
Re:And then there was none (Score:1)
Re:And then there was none (Score:2)
Given the distance the individuals concerned have created between themselves and any legal consequences, I'd say they've positioned Sharman as a flack catcher. They'll let the government and *AAs atack Kazaa, do their worst, and once the dust has settled, they'll have a clear legal position for their next venture. If a lame duck like Kazaa gets wrecked in the process, it'll be no great los
Re:How Exactly Does This Work? (Score:4, Informative)
That's what's happening with Sharman. They're not being busted for creating a client that other people use illegally, they're being told to implement blocks on certain traffic that passes through their network. They didn't do the blocks, so instead they pulled access from Australia in order to comply.
Re:How Exactly Does This Work? (Score:2)
Which is more or less exactly what they have done.
(can't find the original posts, Slashdot search ickiness)
Re:How Exactly Does This Work? (Score:2)
They didn't do the blocks, so instead they pulled access from Australia in order to comply.
Actually, it's only Kazaa Media Desktop downloads that are being blocked, not the FastTrack network that Kazaa uses. I managed to successfully download a file using giFT-FastTrack just fine a moment ago, and I expect it would continue to work with existing copies of the official Kazaa client.
Re:How Exactly Does This Work? (Score:1)
Re:How Exactly Does This Work? (Score:1)
Re:How Exactly Does This Work? (Score:2)
Recycling is normally thought of as a good thing, and I know what imitation [slashdot.org] is the highest form of, but really...
Re:this is terrible! (Score:1)
ACs
Re:this is terrible! (Score:1)
what DO kangaroos eat, anyway?
Tourists
Re:I WoUlD NeVeR... (Score:1)
Re:Probably for the best.. (Score:2, Informative)
Re:so... who cares? (Score:1)