In case some of you were wondering what happened to the last Weekend Tunes installment which just seems to have disappeared into thin air:Just today I received this letter from the good folks at Google explaining why THEY just went ahead and deleted the post, preemptively. Revel in the obscure and opaque wording:
Blogger has been notified, according to the terms of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), that certain content in your blog infringes upon the copyrights of others. The URL(s) of the allegedly infringing post(s) may be found at the end of this message.
The notice that we received from the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) and the record companies it represents, with any personally identifying information removed, will be posted online by a service called Chilling Effects at http://www.chillingeffects.org/
The IFPI is a trade association that represents over 1,400 major and independent record companies in the US and internationally who create, manufacture and distribute sound recordings (the "IFPI Represented Companies").
The DMCA is a United States copyright law that provides guidelines for online service provider liability in case of copyright infringement. We are in the process of removing from our servers the links that allegedly infringe upon the copyrights of others. If we did not do so, we would be subject to a claim of copyright infringement, regardless of its merits. See http://www.educause.edu/
Blogger can reinstate these posts upon receipt of a counter notification pursuant to sections 512(g)(2) and 3) of the DMCA. For more information about the requirements of a counter notification and a link to a sample counter notification, see http://www.google.com/dmca.
Please note that repeated violations to our Terms of Service may result in further remedial action taken against your Blogger account. If you have legal questions about this notification, you should retain your own legal counsel. If you have any other questions about this notification, please let us know.
Sincerely,
The Blogger Team
The letter is the same standard letter that Google/Blogger has been sending to blogs hosted on blogspot.com at the request and under threat of the IFPI (International Federation of the Phonographic Industry) & the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America).
Just a couple of comments:
-BuyTheTickets is an educational blog aimed at a very restricted audience, it is non-commercial and for all intents and purposes any material linked to on this blog should be considered as fair use, as per the disclaimer at the top.
-It is important to note also that there is no actual copyrighted content uploaded by BuyTheTickets that is hosted on any of Google's servers. Blogger simply hosts hyperlinks to files hosted elsewhere. So Google really has no obligation nor any business in removing these links.
-Google is further not playing by the rules as their letter simply offers the URL of the removed blog post but does not specify which link/material is actually causing the problem. This blocks the possibility of any counterclaim since counterclaims need to be filed by referencing specific content. Cease and desist letters at least reference specific material that the legitimate copyright holder would like to see removed. In this case, even wanting to go along with a request to remove the copyrighted content, this would be impossible since I have no idea what materials and what use is being contested.
-If Google keeps this up it will drive everyone away from Blogger as it leaves people no choice but to move their sites to other servers.
What happened to Google's slogan: "Don't Be Evil"?
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