My Thoughts on Technology and Jamaica

Monday, July 12, 2010

Telecom Providers and eCommerce - Nothing is certain but Death and Taxes

The marvel of all history is the patience with which men and women submit to burdens unnecessarily laid upon them by their governments.

William E. Borah, Speech to the U.S. Senate

The recent spate of takeovers or crackdowns if you will, of websites involved in the distributing of copyright infringing content i.e. pirated movies, music, etc as well as the issuing of warrants of arrests for the principal masterminds involved in hosting these sites and the bank accounts holding their ill-gotten gains as stated in the article “Feds sieze cash, Web sites of alledged film pirates”, published June 30, 2010 3:11 PM PDT by Greg Sandoval CNET News - Media Maverick.

The subsequent disclosure that Congress is going after Colleges and Universities to make them culpable for the sins of it student population as it relates to the downloading of said copyright infringing content as stated in the article “Federal rules on campus file sharing kick in today”, published July 1, 2010 7:14 AM PDT by Greg Sandoval CNET News - Media Maverick, may seem to be another attempt to snuff out innovation and the can-do spirit of Colleges and Universities, but it has more business-like motive.

It appears that this is part of the Government of the United States of America’s plan, similar to the Government of Jamaica’s plan based on the Matalon Report, to raise additional taxes, this time from the taxing of business transactions on the Internet.

This is the implementation of a State Sales Tax for Internet and mail-order purchases, similar to those already paid by Brick-and-mortar companies as stated in the article “Democrats push for new Internet sales taxes”, published July 2, 2010 12:28 PM PDT by Declan McCullagh, CNET News - Politics and Law.

Yep. Indeed, never were the words of Benjamin Franklin more potent: Nothing is certain except death and taxes!

This groundbreaking soon-to-be-implemented piece of legislation is no coincidence as it comes on the heels of declarations by the Government of the United States of America to allow Online Gambling so that it can be taxed as stated in the article “Congress may roll dice, legalizing Net Gambling” published May 18, 2010 11:14 PM PDT by Declan McCullagh CNET News - Politics and Law.

A similar decision by the French to open up their Gaming and Lottery Industry to Online Gambling as stated in the article “France opens its markets to online gaming”, published Tuesday June 8, 12:03 pm ET by AFP, Yahoo! News, PARIS, ostensibly for the purpose of increasing tax revenues.

The earlier decisions were being championed by Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) in a bill titled H.R. 2267, would allow Internet casinos to obtain licenses from and be regulated by the Federal Government. Combined with the H.R. 2268, which would impose a 2% federal “Internet Gambling fee” and require that the IRS be notified of taxpayers' winnings and H.R. 4976.

This would allow the State Government to impose a 6% Gambling tax, the Government of the United States of America stands to collect fifty eight billion (US$58,000,000,000) dollars in tax revenue by the year 2015 and create thirty two thousand (32,000) jobs in the process based on a study done by the H2 Gambling Capital, a gaming consultancy.

However, it is the arguments of Michelle Minton, a policy analyst at the free-market Competitive Enterprise Institute, who states that “the fundamental issue is consumer choice - it is not the place of Government to tell adult citizens what activities they can and cannot engage in from the privacy of their own homes”, that carries weight as pointed out in my blog article entitled “MNP, Supreme Ventures Limited, internet Gambling and the Royal Flush of Smart phones”.

Thus these recent actions as it relates to the shutting down of websites that provide access to students of these Colleges and Universities to download said copyright infringing content and now forcing Colleges and Universities to police and stop the illegal downloading of copyright infringing content.

This was championed by the RIAA (Recording Industry Artiste Association) and the MPAA (Motion Picture Artiste Association) and supported by Congress, with consequence of suspended Title IV Federal Aid to Universities and Colleges in the United States of America in breach of the Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) of 2008 begin to make sense

By legitimizing the online purchasing of such content, it would increase taxable revenues, as the only way to get movies and music online is to either subscribe to the service, as in the case of Hulu and its sweet US$10.00 per month streaming deal as stated in the article “Hulu launches $10 video subscription service”, published Tuesday June 29 2010 by RYAN NAKASHIMA, AP Business Writer, Yahoo! News and Skype as stated in the article “Skype for iPhone now support 3G, but free ride's ending”, published June 2 2010, by Ben Patterson, Yahoo! News.

Even the recent granting of the .xxx domain to the purveyors of pornographic material by ICANN (Internet Consortium on Assigned Names and Numbers) as stated in the video CNET Loaded aired Monday 28^th June 2010 by Natalie Del Conte, Senior Editor, CNET News and confirmed in the BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) article “Sex domain gets official approval”, published Friday June 25 2010 by BBC World, which legitimizes the online commerce in nude images and pornography is being seen as a source of taxes from previously tax-free online purchases.

The champions of this overarching grab for taxes is the Democrats, specifically Bill Delahunt and his band of Merry Men (Hollywood, how does that title for my movie sound?) inclusive of his Democratic co-conspirators in the form of Michael Capuano, John Conyers, Stephanie Herseth Sandlin, and Peter Welch, with not a single Republican in sight, odd as they love money and taxing the poor more than the Democrats.

The Bill, colloquially titled the “Main Street Fairness Act”, if enacted would effectively make all Credit Card purchases, even via PayPal, taxable, thus raising an additional twenty three billion dollars (US$23,000,000) in new taxes, effectively ending the halcyon days and reverie of “outsmarting the Man” as the Americans would say by making their purchases online.

This is hardly a new debate, whether in the United States of America or in Jamaica, as taxing transactions over the Internet is also on the cards for Jamaica, as Prime Minister Bruce Golding of the Government of Jamaica recently passed a CyberCrime Bill aimed at making the Internet a safer place for Jamaicans to do business as stated in the article “Move to Tackle CyberCrime - Hacker got Golding”, published Sunday February 14, 2010 by Philip Hamilton, Gleaner Writer, The Jamaica Gleaner.

Government of Jamaica has also begun work on the Credit Reporting Bill that Governor of the Bank of Jamaica, Mr. Brian Wynter, hinted at as being relevant to growth as stated in the article “Credit Rating buearu needed quickly - Wynter”, published Friday January 22 2010, by Alicia Roache, The Jamaica Observer.

In reality it is really more significant to the development of eCommerce, as we already have an Electronic Transactions Act and Mobile Banking is now on the radar, as the Big Three (3) in Banking, namely RBTT (Royal Bank of Trinidad and Tobago), NCB (National Commercial Bank) and BNS (Bank of Nova Scotia) are pushing Mobile Banking using Telecom Provider’s and their smart phones as the Platform upon which customers of these banking institutions can conduct their financial transactions.

It is customer interest that is driving the push towards mobile banking as stated in the article “Customers spur bank competition online”, published Friday, June 25, 2010 By Alicia Roache, The Jamaica Observer.

With the just concluded JDX (Jamaica Debt Exchange) as stated in the article “JDX ends at 99 per cent; Minister says thanks”, published Thursday, February 25, 2010, The Jamaica Observer, its inherently lowering of Interest Rate Spreads is forcing investors to scramble for cover and the safe haven on investments and businesses that are earning foreign exchange revenue.

This is in light of rumblings of a coming Double Dip Recession rumored to be occurring in Europe due to sporadic reports of belt-tightening and self imposed austerity measures in an aim to cut back on waste in terms of Government spending on Social Services that are being considered as luxuries and programs that are not relevant to growth.

Coupled with Oil, this is a prediction that had been previously echoed by Dennis Chung, but predicted to occur in the United States of America for reasons related to lack of investment in actual growth areas such as eCommerce, Agriculture, Export Manufacturing via pursuing the lowering of the cost of Electricity and diversification of their Energy Sector away from Fossil Fuels as stated in the article “RISK OF A DOUBLE-DIP RECESSION?” published Friday, September 18, 2009, by Dennis Chung, The Jamaica Observer.

Thus, these measures by the Government of the United States of America to raise additional sources of Foreign Exchange Revenue directly related to trade via closing the Taxation Net in on Internet Transactions is much the same recommendation for the Jamaican Economy by the Matalon Report.

The Government of the United States of America now are in effect laying this burden on the backs of American taxpayers via the taxation of their luxuries and penchant for gambling and the perusal of sexually explicit content via the Internet………..and no, John Public in Jamaica had no hand in this, as nothing is certain but Death and Taxes.

Alternative Energy and Air Conditioning - Cool Runnings

God how the men
Grin by the wall
Watching the fun
Of the Victory ball

Alfred Noyes, A Victory Dance

Spain, are now first time champions in the Jules Rimet Cup otherwise known as the FIFA World Cup, an apt name as the whole world wondered after this game involving the kicking of a round inflated ball into a net after sweating it out for ninety minutes. History has been made for this team, winner of the European Cup and now dual title holders, a feat only achieved prior by East Germany in, ironically, a match against the Netherlands in 1974. History does indeed have a remarkable way of repeating itself. The Jabulani, as the ball was called, was indeed the sphere about which controversy revolved. But possibly the biggest unseen controversy was occurring off the pitch in the form of the Oracle of Germany, namely the now famous Paul the Octopus, who now at the end of the FIFA World Cup will forever be etched in the minds of many as the most accurate analyst thus far and made many a book maker cry much as was the case in the movie Oceans 13. For my sakes and yours, I do hope the Germans are kind and do not decided to fry him in batter after he fated them to lose. But there is one aspect of Energy Savings upon which one cannot lose, and that is in the arena of saving power used by Air Conditioning systems, which account for nearly 60% of most buildings power usage depending of course on which sources you trust. After all, and the Private Sector must agree, before cursing the JPS Co and their legitimately granted rate increase and despite not making their power generating systems more efficient using LNG (Liquid Natural Gas) they themselves must become more energy efficient. It would seem that LNG is the name for the latest religious movement that Senator James Robertson, Minister of Energy and Mining has now joined as stated in the article “Gov’t eyes LNG cure for Energy problems”, published Wednesday June 16 2010 by Laura Redpath, Senior Staff Writer, the Jamaica Gleaner, laura.redpath@gleanerjm.com (https://www.jamaica-gleaner.com) along with Ernest Moniz, Director of the prestigious Engineering Institute, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in preaching to John Public as stated in the article “Fuel of the future?”, published Sunday July 4 2010 by Dwight Bellanfante, Gleaner Writer The Sunday Gleaner, (https://www.jamaica-gleaner.com) as if it were a new idea. But new it is not, as it had been proposed by the then Portia Simpson Miller of the PNP (People National Party) in 2006 in an MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) with the People’s Republic of Trinidad and Tobago to import LNG at local market prices to refine alumina and have it smelted at the Alutrint facility, a deal which later fell through as stated in the article “No Trinidad LNG for Jamaica anytime soon”, published Friday December 15, 2006, Friday Gleaner by Linda Hutchinson-Jafar, Business Writer, The Jamaica Gleaner, (http://www.jamaica-observer.com) then was revived under the guise of being a “National Priority” as stated by Prime Minister of People’s Republic of Trinidad and Tobago in the article “LNG for Jamaica a national priority – Manning”, published Friday June 26, 2009, The Friday Gleaner, by Linda Hutchinson-Jafar, Business Writer, The Jamaica Gleaner, (http://www.jamaica-observer.com), with the logical reason for the reversal following not long after as stated by Robert Riley, Chairman and CEO (Chief Executive Officer) of BP Republic of Trinidad and Tobago in the article “Rivalry sends Trinidad in search of new LNG markets”, published Saturday, July 4, 2009, The Saturday Gleaner, by Linda Hutchinson-Jafar, Business Writer, The Jamaica Gleaner, (http://www.jamaica-observer.com). Like I said nothing new……

Quite simply, the means of reducing ones onerous load on ones electricity bill (word to the wise in the Private Sector as well as the Hoteliers!!) would be to use more efficient designs for air conditioners, such as the DEVap (Desiccant-Enhanced eVaporative) air conditioner as described in the article “Novel design yields energy-efficient air conditioner”, published June 17, 2010 6:24 AM PDT, by Martin LaMonica, CNET News - Green Tech (http://www.cnet.com) developed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), which according to its backers, not only is 25% to 75% energy efficient but eliminates the need for chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) or hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) as the technology is based on evaporation and desiccation, evaporation to remove heat by transfer of convection heat to evaporate water from a semi-permeable membrane and desiccation to remove any moisture in the air, leaving the air both cool and dry, all done without compressors and only one fan, hence the lower energy cost claim. Even better, the fan can be designed using a Photon Drive Motor, in which the drive shaft of the fan, instead of being connected to a motor, is instead connected to a vane enclosed inside of a vacuum hemisphere that has the vertical fan vanes painted alternately white or black and a strong light source impinging on the vanes, creating movement via light pressure much in the same way charged particles can be used to push a spacecraft through space as stated in the article “Japan unfurls solar sail in space”, published Friday June 11 2010, BBC News, (http:/www.news.bbc.co.uk). Alternately, the Air Conditioning Unit can be powered using solar panels as the article “Novel design yields energy-efficient air conditioner”, published June 17, 2010 6:24 AM PDT, by Martin LaMonica, CNET News - Green Tech (http://www.cnet.com) further goes on to suggest. Solar/Wind Alternative Energy can be used to not only power more energy efficient Air Conditioning units but can eventually, depending on the type of equipment in the building, take the entire business of the grid altogether and reduce the local Power Utility Company, in this case JPS Co into merely a backup facility as expounded in my blog article “Alternative Energy - A Telecom Provider's Strong Tower”, (http://www.mythoughtsontechnologyandjamaica.blogspot.com)

It seems that in the race to chastise local Power Utility Companies, the Private Sector and the Hoteliers are forgetting that they too must play a part in improving efficiency in their consumption of electrical power as ultimately no matter the level of power generating efficiency realized by Energy Sector Liberalization and the cost reductions eschewed thereof by the local Power Utility Company switching to the bold religion of LNG, they will only begin to see real competitive cost savings it they make their own usage of power more efficient, and the first place to start is usually the areas of their system that use the most power, such as Air Conditioning. Private Sector should take their queue from Senator Barack Obama, President of the United States of America, who has decided to put his money where his money should be and invest in the future, that being solar power as stated in the article “Obama commits billions to solar firms”, published July 4, 2010 11:34 AM PDT by Reuters, CNET News - Green Tech, (http://www.cnet.com) and do likewise, as by making this commitment, Senator Barack Obama, President of the United States of America is living true to his campaign promise: Change You Can Believe In. As for the Photon Drive Motor, that is fodder for another article………….about motors with no magnetically induced moving parts.

Digicel and WiMax - Mars Attack

Veni, Vidi, Vici

I came, I saw, I conquered

Julius Caesar, Letter to Amantius, 47 BC

Telecom Provider Digicel indeed has painted themselves a fine portrait of a conqueror worthy of the Great Caesar in the guise of Group CEO Colm Delves, who expounds on their victories in the article “Digicel looks beyond to expand its 32 markets”, published Friday June 25^th 2010 by Al Edwards, The Jamaica Observer.

Despite being detailed, revealed that which people wished to hear: Telecom Provider Digicel is indeed planning to launch WiMax 4G Mobile (IEEE 802.16d) Broadband Network under the brand name Digicel Broadband which now been confirmed in the article “Digicel quietly testing 4G for August launch”, published Sunday June 27^th 2010 by Mark Titus, Gleaner Reporter, The Jamaica Gleaner.

And they have a new phone in the works, which CEO Colm Delves codenames the “ChinaBerry”. This exciting tit-bit had many a pundit excited, as the current “flagship” phone for Telecom Provider Digicel, the Blackberry Storm 2, was not at all living up to the hype that was generated about it, so soundings of a cheaper Blackberry alternative which was just as addictive were promising.

Even Digicel Rising Stars, which was mentioned in another article, specifically as it relates to the controversy surrounding its Host and Chill Room host as mentioned in the article “Rising Star host search tomorow - Kiki addresses rumors”, published Monday March 29^th 2010, The Monday Star had everyone eating out of Telecom Provider Digicel’s hands.

Especially after the Show Producer Sharon Schroeter made mention of a “surprise” in the set design as stated in the article “New-look Digicel Rising Stars for Season 7”, published Friday, July 02, 2010,The Jamaica Observer, ENTERTAINMENT. In the article, Show Producer Sharon Schroeter is quoted as saying “The set is awesome. It's a very high-tech set that has never been used for a live television show locally before. We saw it and loved it instantly and we think it will just blow everybody away on July 4.”

The article also confirms the aforementioned Monday Star article, in starting that the show’s one (1) hour Sunday Show and thirty (30) minute Results Show format on Friday has been abandoned for a condensed new hour and a half (1 ½) format aired only on Sundays from 8:00 pm to 9:30 pm, facilitating more time for voting and generating a more easily controlled advertising revenue, as the (30) minute results show on Friday was possibly wasted production time, with few heavy-hitters other than title sponsors lining up to take advantage of that time slot.

The same sponsors are back in the form of Telecom Provider Digicel, Pepsi, KFC and the RJR Communications Group to bedazzle us with their products as they serve up a sumptuous feast of music and the Courtleigh Hotel is once again the home of the show, no doubt a more cozy and crowd-controlled arena, home to the competition since 2004.

Also this time around, Digicel Rising Stars is taking advantage of the new up and coming phenomenon of FaceBook and Twitter in the form of fan pages, already with in excess of one hundred thousand (100,000) fans on either social network as stated in the article “Digicel gains 100,000 Facebook fans in under 100 days”, published Wednesday, 17 March 2010 by TechJamaica.

With a two (2) hour final show planned, the as-yet seen Chill Room Host Miss Kitty (Digicel Rising Stars peeps, I prefer Tami Chynn or Tessanne Chin!!) after Kerie-Ann Lewis-Thombs, otherwise known as “Kiki” under dubious circumstances as stated in the article “Rising Star host search tomorow - Kiki addresses rumors”, published Monday March 29^th 2010, The Jamaica Star left.

With Lady Rennae in the hot seat and Yendi Phillips out of the picture and now the proud winner of back-to-back titles of Miss Jamaica World and Miss Jamaica Universe as stated in the article “Yendi again”, published Monday, July 05, 2010, ENTERTAINMENT, The Jamaica Observer, the show is basically set to rock for Season 7!!

Then the Big day came. It came on no more fitting a day than the celebration of the Independence Day of the United States of America or ID4 as many condense it without losing its savor. Digicel Rising Stars, after starting with flashback shows on Sunday June 6^th 2010 with its new hour and a half (1 ½) format, with the three (3) subsequent Sundays focused on the show auditions.

Launching with a bang on Sunday July 4^th 2010 with a new Host in the form of Lady Rennae, vouched via the votes of the viewing audience and a gold star-shaped set and (yes, dare I say it!!) a gigantic telepresence screen, not exactly G.I. Joe: Rise of the Cobra but the same concept, as the large HD screen most likely will be used at some point in the show for a video calling demonstration of the capabilities of WiMax 4G Mobile (IEEE 802.16d) Broadband Network.

The show, however, is yet to be declared a success in my eyes, as the Chill Room, according to anecdotal sources on Facebook, was MIA (Missing in Action), apparently due to the lack of a Chill Room Host, which in light of the troubles at the Magnum King and Queens of Dancehall, should have axed Miss Kitty and replaced her with Tami Chynn, who has appeared on Smile Jamaica and ER on Television Jamaica in the capacity as a host and thus this “screen test” is all that is needed to prep her for the post, with her sister Tessanne Chin as backup.

But is there more “cake and ale” as Shakespeare no doubt would no doubt demand? Looks like this is just the beginning of more controversy in Digicel Rising Stars? Stay tuned…........

Seems I spoke too soon with regards to Telecom Provider Digicel. Telecom Provider Digicel on Thursday July 1^st 2010, launched yet another re-hash of their popular “top up with JA$200 promotions to win”, this time re-branded as Digicel Juss Buss. Albeit rebranding, I love the way they do it every time, this time inclusive of a song idea in HD and a dance to go with the new promotion.

Cleverly enough, they have kept the Digicel Gimme 5 Promotion going in the background, thus making John Public wonder if Telecom Provider Digicel plans to just make it a permanent feature of their network as it is hugely popular with its customers. Then the bomb dropped.

While on my way home from Mandeville on Wednesday July 7^th 2010 (long story, will explain later!!) and chatting it up with a NCU (Northern Caribbean University) Broadcasting student, I heard a news item on the radio which suggested that Telecom Provider LIME was launching LIME TV later this Summer of 2010. LIME TV, the much rumored repackaged DirectTV counterpoint to DigiTV as stated in the article “DigiTV launch for 2009 - Mobile Provider branches into TV”, published Friday November 14^th 2009 by Ross Sheil, Online Co-ordinator, The Jamaica Observer already launched in Tonga, Samoa and other Pacific Islands.

This offering from Telecom Provider LIME, is as yet confirmed, as I am yet to read any newspaper articles confirming the same. I have heard no more about this announcement from Telecom Provider LIME.

But like Telecom Provider Digicel, Telecom Provider LIME also launched a promotion for the Summer of 2010 on Thursday July 1^st 2010 with the Apple iPad, possibly the Apple iPad 3G or the Apple iPad 3G +Wi-Fi (IEEE 802.11n) as one of their prizes, confirming what I had suspected: Telecom Provider CLARO may not necessarily be the exclusive Telecom Partner for the Apple iPad, albeit one promotion does not a confirmed assumption make.

Then Telecom Provider Digicel had to out do themselves. Telecom Provider Digicel, via one of its Marketing Managers, came on Smile Jamaica on Friday July 9^th 2010, Television Jamaica and announced not only its continuing support for Reggae Sumfest on the proviso of artistes singing clean music, Konscience being named as being part of a promotional drive thought their thirty two (32) market and doing some futuristic booth at the Denbigh Agricultural Show

Telecom Provider Digicel also plans to launch a new Mobile Phone device, a possibly replacement for their “flagship” phone, in the form of the Motorola Droid a Google Android phone, and yes, a phone which I had designed both in terms of the advertising and design specs to Motorola as well as suggesting its network, Telecom Provider Verizon, even naming its cousins, the Motorola Droid Shadow, later rebranded as the Motorola Droid X as shown in the video CNET First Look Motorola Droid X for Verizon Wireless, aired Wednesday June 23 2010 by Bonnie Cha, Senior Editor, CNET News.

It appears that this phone, to be rebranded the Motorola Mainstream for Telecom Provider Digicel’s markets, may in fact be the first 4G phone in the Caribbean specifically designed for Telecom Provider Digicel’s WiMax 4G Mobile (IEEE 802.16d) Broadband Network, much in the same way the HTC EVO 4G was the first 4G phone on sale in the United States of America as shown in the video CNET Buzz Report, aired Thursday March 23^rd 2010, by Molly Wood, Executive Editor, CNET News.

John Public is therefore giddy with excitement with the prospect of another touch screen smart phone coming to Jamaica, as the Blackberry is now a relic of the 90’s with it QWERTY keyboard, trackball and poor Internet browser.

It time that Telecom Provider Digicel the “Bigger, Better, Network” come with something more exciting as part of its launch for its new WiMax 4G Mobile (IEEE 802.16d) Broadband Network, bristling with faster-than-3G speeds and promising a better Customer Care experience and faster download and upload times on par with Clearwire or even Sprint in the United States of America.

Thus, John Public is expecting more touch screen phones from HTC, the main and cheaper manufacturer of smart phone now all the rage in the United States, not because of its pricing point. But because HTC has a range of touch screen smart phones that are possible Apple iPhone killers, especially as the HTC Droid Incredible was voted the People’s Choice in CNET Prizefight HTC Droid Incredible vs Apple iPhone 3GS, aired Tuesday April 20^th 2010 by Brian Tong, Executive Editor, CNET News.

It was later named the Editor’s Choice in CNET First Look HTC Droid Incredible (Verizon Wireless) aired Monday April 19^th 2010 by Bonnie Cha, Senior Editor, CNET News.

With the only common threat to the Telecom Provider CLARO, Telecom Provider LIME and Telecom Provider Digicel in launching their various offerings on Wireless Broadband being Municipal Wireless Operator Dekal Wireless, much touted and spoken of in rather vague terms in my blog article entitled “CLARO and the Coming of Municipal Wi-Fi - Shadows of the Empire”, Telecom Provider Digicel may yet declare “Veni, Vidi, Vici” in the Wireless Broadband arena…………. if Telecom Provider Digicel can live up to the hype typical of the “Bigger, Better Network”.

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

UWI and Piracy - Release the Kraken

When a dog bites a man that is not news;

But when a man bites a dog that is news

John B. Bogart, usually attributed to C.A. Dana

It seems that the article that I had written on my blog entitled “UWI and Piracy - The Real Pirate Bay” was a bit too premature, as the ongoing saga involving the battle between the RIAA (Recording Industry Artiste Association) and the MPAA (Motion Picture Artiste Association) is not yet over.

Not only had the Congress of the United States of America gone after Colleges and Universities by threatening to withhold Title IV Federal Aid under the Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) of 2008 and the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) as stated in the article “Federal rules on campus file shring kick in today”, published July 1, 2010 7:14 AM PDT by Greg Sandoval, CNET News- Media Maverick.

This came into effect on Thursday July 1^st 2010 AD, but a day prior, on Wednesday June 30^th 2010 AD, (for it is a day that will long be remembered by College and University Students in the United States of America).

A crackdown had been initiated against file sharers as stated in the article “Feds sieze cash, Web sites of aledged film pirates”, published June 30, 2010 3:11 PM PDT by Greg Sandoval, CNET News- Media Maverick as Senator Joe Biden, Vice President of the United States of America, had been promising for a week prior to Wednesday June 30^th 2010.

So far, some of the favorite hangouts of the younger generation [read College and University Students, aged 18 to 28] are now closed, which in their little universe, would be the equivalent of Al-Qaeda bombing a KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken) Restaurant, as akin to a female friend of mine on FaceBook, most of them cannot live without their downloading fix.

The list of causalities reads as follows:

Movies-Links.tv
Now-Movies.com
TVShack.net
Filespump.com
Planetmoviez.com
ZML.com
ThePirateCity.org
Ninjavideo.net and NinjaThis.net

John Public only uses The Pirate Bay file sharing website with associated banks and their accounts being seized and closed down and search warrants being issued as stated by the crisp tones of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokeswoman, (ICE), Mrs. Virginia Kice.

The U.S. intellectual property enforcement coordinator, Victoria Espinel, was in step with the prior statements of Senator Joe Biden, Vice President of the United States of America when she was quoted as saying with regards to the activities of people who host copyright infringing material on their websites: “We have committed to putting you out of business” .Release the Kraken against the hapless students of the Colleges and Universities abroad, as this is related to taxes.

At this point some Jamaicans would say John Public is just “fass”, but alas, this action had been promised long before I was so “fass” and sending my emails all about the place. Plus, I am a mere mortal, not like these politicians and well-to-do noveau reich, so my influence by sending emails to the foreign media is being greatly exaggerated, being merely a poor college student with a flair for creative writing who lives close the sea on the South Coast of Clarendon.

I am skeptical that my articles are even read, possibly tossed on the scrap heap for being overtly Anglophone or long winded, as is my verbose style. After all, with the action taken by Swedish High Court against the principals of The Pirate Bay file sharing website as stated in the article “File sharers vigil for Pirate Bay”, published August 25, 2009 4:00 AM PDT by Greg Sandoval, CNET News - Digital Media in August of 2009, the actions of the United States of America should not come as a surprise.

Here in Jamaica, the Police and the CCN (Constabulary Communications Network) have also identified a link between the practice of copying and selling pirated movies, music and other Digital Content in breach of their respective International Copyright.

The threat of stringent action against people caught producing and purchasing such content as stated in the article “BE WARNED! If you buy a pirated DVD, CD you can be arrested”, published Wednesday, August 26, 2009 by Karyl Walker, Crime/Court co-ordinator, The Jamaica Observer is very real.

However, unlike the Government of the United States of America, the Government of Jamaica is yet to take action against breaches of the Copyright Act as it relates to students on the Colleges and Universities who use their sometimes unfettered access to Broadband Internet to download Copyright Infringing content

This is possibly because they not only lack the access and manpower, but also downloading involves content coming from websites located on servers that are outside of Jamaica, thus falling under the Jurisdiction of the Government of the United States of America

Also most Reggae and Dancehall Artiste have not expressed any concrete “interest” vis–a-vis legal action, in having the illegal downloading of their content blocked, possibly due to their tempestuous relationship with the Government of Jamaica as it relates to many of the being involved in criminal activity.

Especially after the arrest of Mark Myrie, otherwise knows by his nom de guerre as Buju Banton, by Federal Agents on charges of dealing in and attempting to smuggle cocaine as stated in the article “Not and easy road - Buju Banton held for cocaine posession in the United States”, published Sunday, December 13, 2009, Livern Barrett, Gleaner Writer, The Jamaica Gleaner.

Non-payment of taxes and questionable sexually explicit and violent lyrics, for which many have been banned from performing abroad as stated in the article “Locked out - Jamaican acts finding it more and more difficult to get into some countries” , published Sunday, December 27, 2009, Howard Campbell, Gleaner Writer, The Jamaica Gleaner.

An eventuality, despite being told to clean up their act by several concerned media personalities as stated in the article “Clean up your act! Music personalities urge corporate Jamaica, Media to help clean up dancehall content”, published Sunday, December 27, 2009, Roxroy McLean, Gleaner Writer, The Jamaica Gleaner

Since 2008, the University of the West Indies has taken action to militate against this, by setting time-based computer access caps, as well as the number of logon times per day, so as to reduce the amount of traffic on the Intranet.

Blocking of downloading, video and audio streaming websites and social networking websites and instant messaging applications capable of VOIP (Voice over IP) and other high volume users of the internet by a change in the script that initiates ftp (File Transfer Protocol), the key protocol involved in streaming and downloading, is yet to be executed

However, the University of the West Indies can save itself a lot of money in terms upgrading their network to higher capacity by buying head-end access i.e. T1 by just simply reducing the traffic on the network.

As a plus, PBX (Private Branch Exchange) calling by setting up a software switch PBX that uses VOIP similar to BNS (Bank of Nova Scotia) Avaya System, which is a VOIP PBX, can replace the older more costly LIME PBX. Downloading of content would therefore only be possible via the Network Administrator of the respective Computer Lab.

Even better, a Data Cap of 3 GB per month, similar to that imposed by Telecom Providers on their 3G networks could be imposed on students who download with restrictions being enabled in the script that controls ftp so as to merely block the downloading of files with extensions that appear to be media files (audio or video) and documents

Currently, the students are enjoying a relic of the Telecom Providers, that being the “all-you-can-eat” Data Plans, which have gone the way of the dodo on Telecom Provider AT&T’s Broadband Network since Wednesday June 2^nd 2010 as stated in the article “For New AT&T users, no more "all you can eat" data”, published June 2 2010 By PETER SVENSSON, AP Technology Writer, Yahoo News.

Albeit the zeal to deal with Digital Music and Video Piracy being shown by the Government of the United States of America is commendable.

This should also be extended to Colleges and Universities outside of the United States of America by pressuring Governments such as the current Bruce Golding-led Government of Jamaica to get serious about infringements of Copyright, and not leave it to companies having to go after local companies in breach of Copyright Act

The Case with Triple Play Cable Provider FLOW and HBO comes to mind. Instead, a partnership should be forged between the Government of the United States of America, Telecom Providers Digicel, CLARO and LIME and the Government of Jamaica and it various organizations to identify the sources of downloading in Developing Countries such as Jamaica and have them blocked from local access

This would not only have a positive effect on our local music industry, but would also pave the way, along with the implementation of MNP (Mobile Number Portability) for Telecom Providers and DSO (Digital Switch Over) for the coming of eCommerce, as the primary indicator of a country with an interest in eCommerce that is business ready is one that has respect for the Intellectual Property, a point hinted at in my blog article entitled ‘Piracy Solution via MNP, DSO and Legislation”.

Antigua and Barbuda could also pursue this route of co-operation with the Government of the United States of America of between its Telecom Providers, implement MNP and DSO, if not already done, and proceed to block the downloading of Copyright Infringing Content in exchange for waivers on Internet Gambling.

The Baldwin Spencer-led Government of Antigua and Barbuda derives considerable revenue from online gaming, who are in dire need of the revenues derived from Internet Gambling, which is effectively another form of eCommerce.

Equally of interest is the taxation of such eCommerce transactions………..being of course fodder for another great article on my blog. Until then, it seems the spectacle of Men [Governments] biting the Scurvy Dogs of Piracy [websites, college students] will be ongoing and making the rounds in the news.

This as the article quoted thus far state that these actions are only just the beginning………with the recommendation that Latin America and Jamaica be included in efforts of the Government of the United States of America.

Monday, July 5, 2010

UWI and Piracy - The Real Pirate Bay

Fifteen men on a dead man’s chest

Yo, ho, ho and a bottle of rum

Drink to the devil and be done with the rest

Yo, ho, ho and a bottle of rum

Old Pirate Chantey from Stevenson’s Treasure Island

It seems that the above song could have well been the protest song for the young 20-somethings who held a vigil for the impending death of the infamous The Pirate Bay file sharing website.

This as The Pirate Bay file sharing website was illegally sharing Digital content from music to movies and was been threatened with extinction much as was the case with Napster, Aimster, and TorrentSpy, as its ISP (Internet Service Provider), Black Internet, was being threatened with heavy fines by a Swedish High Court as stated in the article “File sharers vigil for Pirate Bay”, published August 25, 2009 4:00 AM PDT by Greg Sandoval, CNET News - Digital Media.

As irony would have it, a click on the hyperlink (its The Pirate Bay if the above does not work!!) reveals that it is up and still kicking. I know.

This very website saved me during my sojourn through the Department of Physics, Faculty of Pure and Applied Sciences at the University of the West Indies during the years 2005 to 2009, as John Public sought to get his BSc in electronics and Chemistry without spending a dime.

Thanks to the infamous The Pirate Bay file sharing website, I was quite able to do that, as it has a treasure trove of books that one can download for free, such as Solomon’s Organic Chemistry, which from my point of view then and still is now, as the Americans would say, a “rip-off”, as I fail to see why someone would purchase such an expensive book when each version was not any much improvement on the first.

Indeed, I never purchased ANY book while at UWI, as The Pirate Bay file sharing website had them all for me to download and read. Plus, I do share the persecution sentiment expressed by Peter Sunde Kolmissopi, one of the co-founders of The Pirate Bay file sharing website, who was quoted in an email to David Kravets of Wired Magazine as saying: “Some of the most talented network people in the world have been working with the site (under) a tremendous threat from the most corrupt and powerful corporations in the world”.

But other students had other thoughts in mind, mainly using their Broadband Internet access to the University of the West Indies to illegally stream and download Digital content, namely movie and music.

I knew it was wrong, but my expressed concern to fellow students fell on deaf ears, as many did not see it as stealing, merely regarding it as just “copying” or “streaming for free” as the makers of the content, they reasoned were relatively well-of people who would not be concerned about a few hundred dollars of lost revenue.

Not to mention the fact that being older than them, they saw me as merely an older person come to spoil their fun. Guess they never met the content owners and multi-million dollar conglomerates trying to shut down who regarded the founders of The Pirate Bay file sharing website Peter Sunde Kolmisoppi, Fredrik Neij, and Gottfried Svartholm Warg, who persons the world over revered as the modern day equivalent of Robin Hood, Scandinavian style, as thieves.

To be fair, John Public regarded them as heroes, as I do not know how I would have survived UWI without being able to download copies of books that were so expensive and out of my reach. But what of the other students at the University of the West Indies who knew what they were doing was wrong?

That was August 2009 in Sweden. In the United States of America, it seems that the RIAA (Recording Industry Artiste Association) and the MPAA (Motion Picture Artiste Association) have finally persuaded Congress to effectively suspend Title IV Federal Aid to Universities and Colleges in the United States of America in breach of the Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) of 2008.

This was legislation lobbyist from the RIAA and the MPAA help to craft along with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). It speaks more specifically to protecting copyright material from unauthorized usage or redistribution for profit as stated in the article

“Federal rules on campus file shring kick in today”, published July 1, 2010 7:14 AM PDT by Greg Sandoval, CNET News - Media Maverick.

The Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) of 2008 lays out legislation that basically holds Universities culpable for breaches of copyright by students, citing that guidelines should be clearly laid out to students as to what constitutes a breach of these anti-piracy legislations, actions that the Universities and Colleges must take to stem the problem and alternates to the illegal downloading and unauthorized sharing of copyrighted material.

This shift from taking legal action against websites that host content for file sharing to the sharers themselves, is best expressed in the comments of Cary Sherman, President of the RIAA, who basically said that “It's the first time ever in the history of dealing with the issue that Congress is holding schools accountable and requiring them to address the problem.

Here you have Congress saying 'Get off the sidelines and deal with the problem.' It's an important signal”. Very important indeed, as by taking action for that which was prior assumed to be the preserve of Universities and Colleges to enforce copyright. This as a Sword of Damocles hangs over the Administrators of the Universities and Colleges heads via the threat of withdrawal of Title IV Federal Aid, thus making compliance a simple matter.

This compliance came into effect on Thursday July 1, 2010, a damper for those who wish to still dabble in file sharing on campus and a strong signal to them that it is not only wrong, it is stealing.

Thus the implications for Universities and Colleges worldwide is obvious, as it means that eventually Music Industry and Movie Industry Associations will possibly seek to take similar actions against Universities and Colleges in their countries. Here in Jamaica at the University of the West Indies and the other Universities and Colleges, the usage of computers and the internet also needs to be more streamlined.

This with Students access to downloading, video and audio streaming websites and social networking websites and instant messaging applications capable of VOIP (Voice over IP) being blocked, as these site are responsible for clogging the network with traffic and exposing the delicate University ecosystem to viruses, previous attacks having crippled the Universities Network, especially as more and more Students have personal laptops and Netbooks.

Additionally, Students accessing the networks on Campus should be given a download/upload cap per month of 3Gb in addition to logon times of one (1) hour per session, which should decrease to half (1/2) and hour once the person has exceeded this download cap for the month, so as to prevent persons from being able to abuse their access to the Campus Internet.

More use needs to be made of Open Source applications e.g. Ubuntu Operating system, Open Office, OURVLE, etc. to replace those applications for which the University needs a license to put on multiple computers, thereby lowering the University’s IT costs in the long run.

Students should only have the ability to use the IM and chat applications on OURVLE and access to websites pre-screened by the Guild of Students deemed important to learning and not able to allow Students to engage in downloading, video and audio streaming, social networking and instant messaging applications capable of VOIP (Voice over IP).

Computers at these Universities and College also need to be put on a regular maintenance schedule, with computers campus wide being regularly defragged, virus scanned, software and files being backed up and files taking up space on hard drives being removed by teams of Students employed by the University on weekends.

If Students wish to download what the University of the West Indies does not allow, they need to speak to the Network Administrator of the Computer Lab or purchase a 3G modem from Telecoms Providers LIME or CLARO or a Digicel Wimax 4G Mobile (IEEE 802.16d) modem (when it becomes available), or better yet, a Netbook or laptop from the aforementioned Telecoms Providers with the modem already embedded in the laptop – and see how it feels to have to pay for your internet access, as most wireless internet access is capped.

University and College students should realize that they live in a more privileged time, where knowledge is truly democratized, being able to search and pick of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge and Evil using Google, at which point my parallel to the Garden of Eden ends.

Thus I am left to wonder if young people’s attitudes to the right of content owners to be compensated for their work will ever change, as the rebellious nature of those who steal may be best expressed in the sea chantey, as these students enjoying their Frat Parties and Free Music on the University of the West Indies will see those follies coming to an end. John Public will drink to the Devil and be done with the rest……….

_tec_atR � a a `Q, � , or New AT&T users, no more "all you can eat" data”, published June 2 2010 By PETER SVENSSON, AP Technology Writer, Yahoo News.

Albeit the zeal to deal with Digital Music and Video Piracy being shown by the Government of the United States of America is commendable.