Kat.PH domain is down by PH government

Kat.PH or Kickass Torrents is a popular torrent site that serves all kinds of files from movies, TV shows, apps, games, books, and music. Go to that site now and it will get you nowhere.

DotPH Domains took down kat.ph after IPOPHL's Bureau of Legal Affairs last Tuesday issued a temporary restraining order (TRO). The TRO stemmed from a copyright infringement complaint filed by the Philippine Association of Recording Industry Inc (PARI), which groups music recording companies. PARI complained about kat.ph's unauthorized use of original Pilipino music (OPM), citing "irreparable damages."

The IPOPHL's 72-hour TRO may be extended to 20 days. If a counter-affidavit is filed by the domain registrar, the agency will issue a corresponding preliminary injunction to continuously block the website until the termination of the case.

The Philippines has been retained in the watch list of the 2013 Special 301 Report on Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) released by the Office of US Trade Representative (USTR) last May, as the US agency cited "significant concern" on rising piracy over the Internet.

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BT readies Newzbin piracy block

26 October 2011 Last updated at 11:25 GMT After going into administration, Newzbin was sold to new owners who resurrected it BT has 14 days to block access to a site that links to pirated movies, a judge has said.

It follows a High Court ruling in July, ordering the internet service provider (ISP) to block access to Newzbin 2.

Newzbin 2 is a members-only site which aggregates a large amount of the illegally copied material.

It is the first time that an ISP has been ordered to block access to such a site and it is expected that court orders against other ISPs will follow.

The landmark case, brought by the Motion Picture Association, has been hailed as a victory for the creative industries which have struggled to keep the problem of online piracy at bay.

The MPA said it was pleased that the block could now begin.

"This is a win for the creative sector. Securing the intervention of the ISPs was the only way to put the commercial pirates out of reach for the majority of consumers," said Chris Marcich, president and managing director of the association.

"This move means that we can invest more in our own digital offerings, delivering higher quality and more variety of products to the consumer."

Lord Puttnam CBE, President of the Film Distributors' Association added: "This is a very significant day for the UK's creative industries. The law is clear. Industrial online piracy is illegal and can be stopped."

BT has also been ordered to pay the costs of implementing the block, something it had argued it should not have to do.

"The judge ruled that the ISP is closely related to the wrongdoing, it happened on its pipes and therefore it should pay," said Simon Baggs, a partner at Wiggin LLP law firm.

"That is significant because it means the rightsholders have found a cost-efficient remedy to blocking these sites."

Sites that link to pirated films and music are becoming the new focus of the creative industries. Traditional peer-to-peer software, which was once the main method of sharing free content, is now believed to account for just a quarter of piracy.

Blocking is also a more attractive option for rightsholders than suing individual file-sharers.

BT remained tightlipped about the verdict, saying simply that "it is helpful to have the order now and the clarity that it brings".

The firm will use its CleanFeed software, created in partnership with the Internet Watch Foundation, to block websites that show images of child abuse.

The company has always said that it would not be a simple task to tweak the software to block other sites.

Legal alternatives

Newzbin 2 has had a chequered history. Described by the MPA as "a criminal organisation whose business model is based on wholesale copyright infringement," the site's owners have proved resilient to attempts to shut it down.

When the original Newzbin was forced to close via an earlier court case, a successor quickly set up outside UK jurisdiction.

Those who run the site have said that they are readying software that will get around the BT block.

Critics of site blocking have always argued that the real solution to piracy is to provide affordable legal alternatives.

Last week the Open Rights Group (ORG) published a study into how much legal content is available.

It found that only 43% of the top 50 British films can be bought or rented online, while only 58% of the BAFTA Best Film awarded winners since 1960 have been made available.

Peter Bradwell, an ORG campaigner, said the ruling set a "dangerous" precedent.

"Website blocking simply will not work. It's a dangerous technological intervention when the legal markets are still a mess," he said.

"Consumers have moved online a lot quicker than the creative industries. The focus should be on making sure they catch up with consumer demand instead of these deranged plans to censor what people are allowed to look at."

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Lawyer denies Greek piracy 'scam'

  Thousands of letters were sent to alleged filesharers in the in the UK A lawyer whose firm demanded money from alleged illegal downloaders in the United Kingdom has denied re-starting the scheme in Greece.

Andrew Crossley told the BBC that e-mails sent out in the name of ACS:Law were a scam and nothing to do with him.

The messages accuse their recipients of file sharing and demand payments of £1,665.

Mr Crossley's firm was wound-up and he is the subject of disciplinary action for sending similar letters in the UK.

The Greek letters were brought to light by Ralli Solicitors, which represented some of those accused by ACS:Law. It is now advising a client based in Greece.

"They have received e-mails purporting to be from the law firm," said Ralli solicitor Michael Forrester.

The letters have been sent to overseas addresses.

"The IP addresses quoted do not appear conventional, making reference to country codes outside of the UK," said Mr Forrester.

"Despite this, the letters of claim refer to UK law under the Copyrights, Design and Patents Act," he added.

Compensation

One of the letters seen by the BBC read: "We act as solicitors for DigiProtect Ltd, the owners of copyright of various films and music rights.

"Our client has retained forensic computer analysts to search for and identify internet addresses from which their copyright works are being made available on so-called peer-to-peer programs."

The letter asks that cheques are made payable to ACS:Law and supplies a central London address, which is in an adjacent building to where the law firm used to trade from.

However, Andrew Crossley contacted the BBC to say he was not involved.

"It is not my email, not my address - the address is old and post code is misstated, there is no client or company of that name, it is not a demand made by me and it is quite clear from the way it was written that it was not," he wrote in an e-mail.

Mr Crossley said he plans to contact the police in relation to the messages.

UK cases

Prior to its closure, ACS:Law was accused of taking advantage of new UK laws on piracy in order to make money.

Its sole proprietor, Mr Crossley teamed up with companies DigiProtect and MediaCAT, which purported to represent copyright owners.

Together they sent letters to around 10,000 people in the UK, alleging that the IP addresses of their computers had been linked to illegal file sharing.

Individuals were given the option of paying £500 or facing court action.

Many of those contacted said they had never engaged in such activity. Consumer watchdog Which accused the firm of speculative invoicing and claimed that none of the evidence would stand up in court.

Bankrupt

Mr Crossley eventually brought 26 cases to court, but soon after hearings began he tried to have them dismissed.

Judge Colin Birss QC refused to allow proceedings to stop and accused Mr Crossley of trying to "to avoid judicial scrutiny".

He, in turn, left the court mid-way through the case and had his barrister read out a statement in which he said that he no longer wanted to pursue net pirates because he had received death threats.

The case was dismissed and Mr Crossley faced a large bill for wasted costs. The accused have since settled out of court.

Soon after, ACS:Law was wound up and declared bankrupt.

Mr Crossley is currently the subject of an investigation by the Solicitors' Regulation Authority.

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