Spanish Web Sites Go Blank To Protest New Rules 18
Diver777 writes "New tough rules for websites in Spain have caused at least 300 websites to go blank in protest. The new rules call for any site which generates revenue to register with the government. The law would also apply to foreign-hosted Web sites if the people transacting business on them are physically in Spain. Get the Yahoo story here."
Businesses (Score:1, Flamebait)
Businesses have to register all over the world so that consumers' rights can be protected and taxes can be collected.
Why do Spanish commercial website owners feel that they are different?
Re:Businesses (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Businesses (Score:1)
Or so the government can keep tabs on you.
Read the article. It's not about commercial website owners -- it's about "the little guy" (TM). Like people who don't even make enough money to pay for their domain name registration (or make any money at all!), but now have to pay exhorbitant fees because they "generate revenue", which is -- as so often happens with government mandates -- vague and interpretable in a plethora of ways.
It would be similar to saying that you have to register -- and pay a fee -- simply because you wanted to have a yardsale.
Re:Businesses (Score:2, Interesting)
Not very similar; it is a matter of perception. With a yardsale is is painfully obvious to the buyer that this is an informal transaction between two individuals.
However, online, the buyer only has the website to go by. It is easy to create a very professional looking website but behind the scenes still be selling junk.
Yardsale regestration (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Yardsale registration (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Yardsale registration (Score:1)
Re:Businesses (Score:1)
Now my site (no shameless advertising here) needs to have that information on the page too? (not that it doesn't already)
I think the big issue here is the deffinition of "Commercial Website" something where the only revenue is 0.00002 dollars per banner viewed, IMHO shouldn't count as a comercial site, but If I read the artice, it does
Spain lacks real government (Score:5, Informative)
They plan on enforcing this...how? (Score:5, Funny)
wait, I know. they're going to use some guys in some snazzy red uniforms, whose chief weapons are fear, suprise, an almost fanatical devotion to the pope and....
Re:They plan on enforcing this...how? (Score:1, Funny)
Nor should you... (Score:2, Funny)
since, technically, nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition.
Re:They plan on enforcing this...how? (Score:1)
They may be silly, but they're not that silly.
Re:They plan on enforcing this...how? (Score:1)
"NobodyexpectstheSpa... oh bugger."
Funny inaccuracies (Score:4, Informative)
Any Spain-based Web site that engages in commerce - even a struggling Egyptology site - must now register with the government
It's more broad. Any service provider that receives money in exchange for its services is bound by the law. It includes ISPs, hosting companies, bandwidth companies, search engines, web caches and, yes, websites. The provider does not have to be Spain-based, just to sell something to Spaniards is enough to be bound.
The tough rules have prompted at least 300 Web site owners to take their pages offline in protest
Rules aren't tough. The provider must include some up-to-date information about itself in its own web pages (physical address, email address, web domain names used to sell, services offered, prices and shipping charges, etc...), for the government to read it whenever it pleases. This is just the kind of information scammers and con artists hate to give, and that's the rationale. It mandates no fees just for existing out there, just fines if you don't comply and get caught.
"This law is a huge blow to freedom of expression in Spain," said Kriptopolis lawyer Carlos Sanchez Almeida.
Obviously the above has nothing to do with freedom of expression, since it applies only to providers which receive monies in exchange for goods and services. Carlos complains about another provision: judges can order any service provider to shut down or block any service deemed against the law. See below.
The statute goes even further. It says that if Spanish authorities deem something on a foreign-hosted Web site threatening to Spain's national defence, public order, consumer rights or other values, they can order Spanish operators to sever access to that site.
That clause puts Spain in the same league of content control as Saudi Arabia and China, said Jonathan Zittrain, a Harvard Law School expert on international Internet regulation.
Mr. Zittrain is misinformed, no doubt, because the law clearly states that only judges can do that, and government officials cannot. Since a judge is empowered to shut down anything that is positively against the law, I wonder where is the surprise. That's their job.
He said the law will discourage people from creating Web sites simply because a subject interests them and they want to share their knowledge.
Nonsense.
But Perez has problems with other elements of the law, such as the requirement that access providers save information on pages their customers visit.
Yes, a maximum of one year of log files should be kept in secure storage by the provider, for access only to law enforcement with a search warrant.
"What is this going to cause?" Sanchez Almeida asked rhetorically. "Censorship."
Nonsense again.
And finally, the most important paragraph in the law, which the article curiously does not mention. Here it is (in Spanish):
Queda prohibido el envío de comunicaciones publicitarias o promocionales por correo electrónico u otro medio de comunicación electrónica equivalente que previamente no hubieran sido solicitadas o expresamente autorizadas por los destinatarios de las mismas.
In other words: spam is banned (YahooooOOOO!). Only opt-in is allowed.
Amanece... (Score:1)
que no es poco.
[You aren't likely to get the full impact of that reference if you aren't Spanish, but you might understand my meaning after you see this [distrito.com] -- a movie every Spanish citizen should see.]
Bueno, creo que con mencionar la peli ya queda dicho todo.
Re:Funny inaccuracies (Score:1)
>>something on a foreign-hosted Web site threatening to Spain's national
>>defence, public order, consumer rights or other values, they can order
>>Spanish operators to sever access to that site.
>>That clause puts Spain in the same league of content control as Saudi
>>Arabia and China, said Jonathan Zittrain, a Harvard Law School expert
>>on international Internet regulation.
>>"What is this going to cause?" Sanchez Almeida asked rhetorically.
>>"Censorship."
>Nonsense again.
How is that nonsense? How is that not censorship?? Google and Freenet were
deemed to be a threat to public order and to the government by Chinese
officials -- that is not censorship either?