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Censorship Your Rights Online

Sweden To Outlaw File Sharing, Crypto Breaking? 578

Martin Kallisti writes "The Swedish Department of Justice has today proposed a bill to be put into effect, if it passes Parliament, on the 1st of January, 2004. It is in accordance to EU directives, but will also criminalize the downloading of material from the Internet without the explicit permission of the copyright holder. Furthermore, it will become illegal to break cryptos, circumvent copy protection (mod chips et al), copy books, and as I understand it, use software that is designed to help with any of these tasks, and many other things." An anonymous reader points to an English-language article about this Swedish EUCD proposal, which also mentions a hefty $4 levy on blank digital media such as CD-ROMs.
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Sweden To Outlaw File Sharing, Crypto Breaking?

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  • Good (Score:3, Funny)

    by MisterFancypants ( 615129 ) on Wednesday June 18, 2003 @08:58PM (#6238749)
    It is about time a government started taking intellectual property rights seriously. I hope this same attitude will take hold in the US, where we are in danger of the creative people who bring us movies and records going bankrupt due to all of the digital pirating of their content.
  • pr0n (Score:5, Funny)

    by eniu!uine ( 317250 ) on Wednesday June 18, 2003 @09:00PM (#6238764)
    This isn't going to affect Swedish porn is it?

  • by Hogwash McFly ( 678207 ) on Wednesday June 18, 2003 @09:02PM (#6238778)
    And there'll be file sharing barons who'll send you your Britney Spears audio tracks in an iPod stashed in a bowling ball that rolls through a series of underground tunnels, with the authorities none the wiser
  • by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 18, 2003 @09:03PM (#6238782)
    Macht schnell mit die Artwork. I must get back to Dancecentrum in Stuttgart in time to see Kraftwerk.
  • by jr87 ( 653146 ) on Wednesday June 18, 2003 @09:04PM (#6238789) Homepage
    there is no possible way for them to enforce this.Even if they did I could imagine the headline... 1/3 of population rounded up in latest crackdown on downloading.... story at 11
  • by mrklin ( 608689 ) <ken...lin@@@gmail...com> on Wednesday June 18, 2003 @09:11PM (#6238842)
    1. Hoard CD-ROMs now.

    2. Sell in Sweden after 1/1/2004.

    3. Profit!!!

  • by mackstann ( 586043 ) on Wednesday June 18, 2003 @09:20PM (#6238900) Homepage
    Who is "we"? It's not the US, because in the US, you could just be hauled off under the patriot act.
  • Re:pr0n (Score:4, Funny)

    by coupland ( 160334 ) * <dchase@hotmailCHEETAH.com minus cat> on Wednesday June 18, 2003 @09:21PM (#6238902) Journal

    This isn't going to affect Swedish porn is it?

    Dunno, could undoing a bra stap be considered a circumvention technique?

  • (c) (Score:5, Funny)

    by NanoGator ( 522640 ) on Wednesday June 18, 2003 @09:22PM (#6238907) Homepage Journal
    I hereby copyright this post. I expressly forbid these words from being read anywhere inside of Sweden.

    Man I can't wait to see how many people end up in jail now.
  • by Chairboy ( 88841 ) on Wednesday June 18, 2003 @09:24PM (#6238920) Homepage
    Hey... you gave all the steps. You're SUPPOSED to leave one blank, or else it looks real. A legit, profitable business model has no place on slashdot.

    Shame on you....
  • But .... (Score:1, Funny)

    by Qweezle ( 681365 ) on Wednesday June 18, 2003 @09:31PM (#6238952) Journal
    But, I thought Swedes don't download anything really all that infringing except for all that porn of their absolutely drop-dead beautiful women of theirs, right?
  • by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 18, 2003 @09:33PM (#6238961)
    Are they Cracking Down?

    Perhaps.

    Are they Downing Crack?

    More likely.

    Just wondering for anyone that knows - how is the Computer/IT market in Sweden? I know there's a relatively large number of upstanding Swedish folk online, per capita, but can they outweigh the vapid bunch of lobbyists and quasi-luddites backing this legislation?

    Ryan Fenton
  • Re:Yowza! (Score:3, Funny)

    by EverDense ( 575518 ) on Wednesday June 18, 2003 @09:35PM (#6238977) Homepage
    What a great idea! Imagine, indie bands having to pay $4 per blank CD for the privilege of
    recording their own original music without a label.


    Sounds like a GREAT PLAN to me.
    Hopefully it will kill off the next ABBA, before they even start.
  • by joe_bruin ( 266648 ) on Wednesday June 18, 2003 @09:53PM (#6239066) Homepage Journal
    Bork Bork bork "Bork Bork Bork bork Bork [regeringen.se] bork bork bork bork bork bork bork bork bork bork , bork bork bork Bork, bork bork 1st bork Bork, 2bork4. Bork bork bork bork bork BORK bork, bork bork bork bork bork bork bork bork bork bork Bork bork bork bork bork bork bork bork bork. Bork, bork bork bork bork bork bork bork, bork bork bork (bork bork bork bork), bork bork, bork bork Bork bork bork, bork bork bork bork bork bork bork bork bork bork bork bork, bork bork bork bork." Bork bork bork bork bork bork Bork-bork bork [afterdawn.com] bork bork Bork BORK bork, bork bork bork bork bork $4 bork bork bork bork bork bork bork CD-BORKs.
  • by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 18, 2003 @10:53PM (#6239432)
    The Hungarian Phrasebook sketch from Monty Python's Flying Circus

    Set: A tobacconist's shop.

    Text on screen: In 1970, the British Empire lay in ruins, and foreign
    nationalists frequented the streets - many of them Hungarians
    (not the streets - the foreign nationals). Anyway, many of
    these Hungarians went into tobacconist's shops to buy
    cigarettes....

    A Hungarian tourist (John Cleese) approaches the clerk (Terry Jones). The
    tourist is reading haltingly from a phrase book.

    Hungarian: I will not buy this record, it is scratched.
    Clerk: Sorry?
    Hungarian I will not buy this record, it is scratched.
    Clerk: Uh, no, no, no. This is a tobacconist's.
    Hungarian: Ah! I will not buy this *tobacconist's*, it is scratched.
    Clerk: No, no, no, no. Tobacco...um...cigarettes (holds up a pack).
    Hungarian: Ya! See-gar-ets! Ya! Uh...My hovercraft is full of eels.
    Clerk: Sorry?
    Hungarian: My hovercraft (pantomimes puffing a cigarette)...is full of eels
    (pretends to strike a match).
    Clerk: Ahh, matches!
    Hungarian: Ya! Ya! Ya! Ya! Do you waaaaant...do you waaaaaant...to come
    back to my place, bouncy bouncy?
    Clerk: Here, I don't think you're using that thing right.
    Hungarian: You great poof.
    Clerk: That'll be six and six, please.
    Hungarian: If I said you had a beautiful body, would you hold it against me?
    I...I am no longer infected.
    Clerk: Uh, may I, uh...(takes phrase book, flips through it)...Costs six and
    six...ah, here we are. (speaks weird Hungarian-sounding words)
    Hungarian punches the clerk.

    Meanwhile, a policeman (Graham Chapman) on a quiet street cups his ear as if
    hearing a cry of distress. He sprints for many blocks and finally enters the
    tobacconist's.

    Cop: What's going on here then?
    Hungarian: Ah. You have beautiful thighs.
    Cop: (looks down at himself) WHAT?!?
    Clerk: He hit me!
    Hungarian: Drop your panties, Sir William; I cannot wait 'til lunchtime.
    (points at clerk)
    Cop: RIGHT!!! (drags Hungarian away by the arm)
    Hungarian: (indignantly) My nipples explode with delight!

    (scene switches to a courtroom. Characters are all in powdered wigs and
    judicial robes, except publisher and cop. Characters:
    Judge: Terry Jones
    Bailiff: Eric Idle
    Lawyer: John Cleese
    Cop: Graham (still)
    Publisher: Michael Palin )

    Bailiff: Call Alexander Yalt!
    (voices sing out the name several times)
    Judge: Oh, shut up!
    Bailiff: (to publisher) You are Alexander Yalt?
    Publisher: (in a sing-songy voice) Oh, I am.
    Bailiff: Skip the impersonations. You are Alexander Yalt?
    Publisher: I am.
    Bailiff: You are hereby charged that on the 28th day of May, 1970, you did
    willfully, unlawfully, and with malice of forethought, publish an
    alleged English-Hungarian phrase book with intent to cause a breach
    of the peace. How do you plead?
    Publisher: Not guilty.
    Bailiff: You live at 46 Horton Terrace?
    Publisher: I do live at 46 Horton terrace.
    Bailiff: You are the director of a publishing company?
    Publisher: I am the director of a publishing company.
    Bailiff: Your company publishes phrase books?
    Publisher: My company does publish phrase books.
    Bailiff: You did say 46 Horton Terrace, did you?
    Publisher: Yes.
    Bailiff: (strikes a gong) Ah! Got him!
    (lawyer and cop applaud, laugh)
    Judge: Get on with it, get on with it.
    Bailiff: That's fine. On the 28th of May, you published this phrase book.
    Publisher: I did.
    Bailiff: I quote on example. The Hungarian phrase meaning Can you direct me
    to the station? is translated by the English phrase, Please fondle
    my bum.
    Publisher: I wish to plead incompetence.
    Cop: (stands) Please may I ask for an adjournment, m'lord
  • Levy (Score:3, Funny)

    by heli0 ( 659560 ) on Thursday June 19, 2003 @12:18AM (#6239896)
    $4 levy on blank digital media such as CD-ROMs.

    So I assume blank DVD's have a levy of $28 since they store ~7x the data?

    Now a spindle of 100 CDR's will be $420 instead of $20?

    Will a spindle of 100 DVD-R's be $3000?

    I suppose I will have to begin importing DVDR's instead of Heroin into Sweden now.
  • by AftanGustur ( 7715 ) on Thursday June 19, 2003 @03:29AM (#6240685) Homepage


    It is a nation of blondes after all..

  • by mcbridematt ( 544099 ) on Thursday June 19, 2003 @03:57AM (#6240772) Homepage Journal
    Read carefully. It says it's illegal to get files without the permission of the copyright holder. So in other words, P2P porn will still be legal in Sweden
  • by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 19, 2003 @04:12AM (#6240820)
    yay! i'd get an ipod and a bowling ball!

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