UN Broadcasting Treaty seen as severely limiting essential freedoms

[cyberpj]

UN Broadcasting Treaty seen as severely limiting essential freedoms
5/3/2006 4:04:20 PM, by Anders Bylund

A remarkably unacceptable treaty proposal is currently being pushed through the U.N. World Intellectual Property Organization's Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights, seemingly concieved by the RIAA and MPAA and backed by traditional old-line media businesses. The Broadcasting Treaty, currently undergoing review at a UN convention in Geneva, Switzerland, contains passages that would severely restrict the concepts of fair use and freedom of speech—on a global level. IP Watch has an excellent overview of the issues:

The proposed broadcasting treaty would create entirely new global rights for broadcasting companies who have neither created nor own the programming. What's even more alarming is the proposal from the United States that the treaty regulate the Internet transmission of audio and video entertainment.

It is dangerous and inappropriate for an unelected international treaty body to undertake the task of creating entirely new rights, which currently exist in no national law, such as webcasting rights and anti-circumvention laws related to broadcasting. A global treaty is not the place for experimentation with new rights, but rather for the harmonization of existing legal norms. WIPO treads on shaky ground by proposing to create new rights that no elected body in the world has yet agreed to.

cont'd...
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20060503-6742.html

This is serious folks - read, understand, share and recommend this one. They're coming after everything Internet using copyright to do it.

[Rosco T.]

1. It's more than just 'the internet'.... this excerpt..

"For example, if US President Bush gave an interview to Fox News, Fox could prevent any subsequent use of that footage including fair use, commentary, or criticism of President Bush - at its sole discretion - under the new anti-circumvention rights created by this treaty. Much of the political humor available on Comedy Central's "The Jon Stewart Show" could become illegal under this treaty."

[cyberpj]

2. Much of the political humor on Olbermann, Daily show & Inet would be GONE

People waste a lot of time bickering about small stuff here and they just keep piling on the removal of our freedom of speech. I've posted this twice in other forums and didn't get a single reply.

Maybe I need to use the word COLBERT in the subject line...

[leveymg]

3. None of this becomes U.S. Law without enabling legislation.

As we've seen time and again with GOOD treaties -- Convention Against Torture, Genocide, etc. -- Congress has to pass an enabling law before UN treaties can be enforced domestically. I wouldn't panic about this, yet.

[cyberpj]

4. Thanks. They both slip and bully so much crap through I'm paranoid. And

it doesn't seem to matter lately what Congress has to pass, Bush can just write another signing statement. It's the overall tone of so many agendas getting pushed and shoved at the same time right under our understandably distracted noses. It's a technique they're using oh so very well.

I am The Worrier.......

"We're all wearing the blue dress now."