[FYI] The Mouse blasting privacy

[Kristian Köhntopp <kris@koehntopp.de>]

http://www.variety.com/body.asp?HbkId=1892220&subcat=-1&ArticleId=1117782380

Updated: 6/8/00 
                   
MOUSE BLASTING PIRACY
By JILL GOLDSMITH 

As lawsuits fly regarding music piracy on the Internet, Walt Disney Co.
topper Michael Eisner told lawmakers Wednesday that online copyright
infringement damages more than the entertainment industry's bottom line,
putting the U.S. Constitution and the nation's balance of trade at risk
as
well.

Reinforcing his role as an outspoken crusader against 'Net piracy,
Eisner
brought his message to the Joint Economic Committee and then addressed
more than 100 members of Congress on behalf of the Congressional
Internet Caucus and the House-Senate judiciary committees. 
Eisner noted that copyright-related industries, including movies, TV,
homevideo, music, publishing and computer software, contribute more
than $530 billion to the U.S. economy -- with foreign sales a big chunk
of
that. Messing with copyrights spells trouble all around.

"The Internet can only achieve its full potential if it is governed by a
regard
for property rights as grounded in the United States Constitution," he
said.
If not, "the development of the Internet will stall and we will risk
undermining one of the most positive contributors to our nation's
balance
of payments."

Eisner said the showbiz sector must urgently create watermarkings and
other security measures to protect copyrights and asked Congress to
consider legislation that would force computer makers and Internet
companies to implement the necessary safeguards.

...

-- 
"Twentysomething digirati offer this response to copyright-related
 quandaries technology has spawned: 'Copyright is dead. Get over it.'"
	-- http://www.inside.com/story/Premium_Story?art_id=5280