[dvd-discuss] "Digital Piracy: On the Rise?"

["Michael A Rolenz" <Michael.A.Rolenz(at)aero.org>]

"Digital Piracy: On the Rise?" 
ZDNet (02/11/02); Borland, John 

Senate Committee on Foreign Relations Chairman Joseph Biden 
(D-Del.) has commissioned a report detailing the need to 
bolster anti-piracy efforts at home and abroad. The release 
of the report will coincide with a committee hearing 
focusing on the spread of digital piracy. Testimony will be 
heard from leading executives from the music and 
entertainment industries. In its current draft, Biden's 
report recommends that U.S. trade officials negotiate with 
foreign countries for stronger intellectual property 
enforcement regulations, while foreign governments should 
crack down on software piracy within their own 
organizations. "As businesses struggle to adapt to the new 
economic landscape, we need to ensure that government 
authorities throughout the world, and at home, are prepared 
to address the new challenges before them," Biden writes in 
his report. Lawmakers are sharply divided on legislation to 
safeguard against piracy. Sen. Ernest Hollings (D-S.C.) has 
introduced a proposal to embed anti-piracy technology in 
digital devices such as DVD players and PCs, while Rep. Rick 
Boucher (D-Va.) is seeking to revise copyright law that 
makes it illegal to circumvent anti-piracy protections. 
(www.zdnet.com)