Pirate Bill

[mdlbear]

CE-Oh no he didn't! Part IX - Gates watches pirated videos - Engadget

But you've kind of got to hand it to the world's richest man -- someone known for his fine-tipped views on intellectual property and piracy -- admitting to, then backing out of, then copping to watching pirated video content. Peep this tidbit from Mr. Gates to Mossberg and Kara Swisher in a recent WSJ interview:

Mossberg: Talk about YouTube. What do you think about that? Why aren't you doing something like that?
Gates: If we did YouTube, we'd be in a lot of trouble. First of all, people would say, "How do you make money?" Second, they'd say, what about all that copyright violation taking place up there. It's a neat site. I saw a bunch of old Harlem Globetrotters movies up there the other night, it's great.
Swisher: You watch physics lectures and Harlem Globetrotters?
Gates: This social-networking thing takes you to crazy places.
Swisher: But those were stolen, correct?
Gates: Stolen's a strong word. It's copyrighted content that the owner wasn't paid for. So yes.

And I thought he was a pirate just because he was an ultra-rich monopolist...

Comments

[madfilkentist]

And I've gone to websites that contain unauthorized copies of lyrics, to check the content of a song. I'm not going to jump on everyone who simply looks at pirated material.

[mdlbear]

Nor am I. The main purpose of both the original post and mine was to point out the absurdity of labeling every unauthorized copy of a work "piracy".

And to point out the hypocracy of Bill Gates, who heads -- or used to head -- a company that does label every unauthorized copy piracy, and goes to great lengths to prevent unauthorized, though technically fair use, copies being made of its own products.

Note, too, the subtle distinction here -- it's the copy on YouTube that was labeled as "stolen". However, downloading an unauthorized copy is also infringement, so Gates is a "pirate" by his own admission. Microsoft does not hesitate to go after people who download unauthorized copies of Windows, for example.

No, I'm not going to jump on everybody who does this. But I have no hesitation at all in jumping on Bill Gates for it.

[aerowolf.livejournal.com]

Bill Gates just admitted to a felony punishable by $100,000 fine, damages, and 20 years in prison.

Wow.

[mdlbear]

I'm not sure whether that particular bill has gone through -- I hope it hasn't. But the $100K isn't a fine, it's statutory damages. That means that it's a civil case, which is easier to win, rather than a criminal one.

[aerowolf.livejournal.com]

The bill that makes copyright infringement a felony? That's been on the books since the year I was born.