12.29.11
Cablegate: Microsoft Lobbies to Illegalise Backups and Make Copyright Violation a “Crime”
Microsoft wants YOU… in prison!
Summary: Lobbying from Microsoft shows just how far the company is willing to go to criminalise its own end users
YESTERDAY we wrote about Apple's use of blackmail to influence French copyright law. According to the following Cablegate cable from Tel Aviv, Microsoft has been doing the same type of thing and met resistance. To quote: “Microsoft Israel has been the most successful of the interested parties in lobbying for changes in the Copyright Bill. Government Affairs Manager for Microsoft Israel, Shai-lee Spigelman, told EconCouns on July 13 that Microsoft has formed a coalition of foreign and Israeli software development companies to push for changes in the bill. Microsoft’s key concerns center around the provisions for creating back-up copies and the unlimited exemptions granted to public libraries. Anti-piracy manager at Microsoft Israel, Gil May-Tal, told Econoff that he has also pushed the MoJ to define end-user piracy as a crime, but found MoJ’s Afori entrenched in opposition to such a change. While Microsoft wants to see end-user piracy defined as a crime in the legislation, May-Tal deemed it not worth pushing, and thereby risking the positive relationship that Microsoft has built with the Afori. May-Tal said Afori is inclined to consider changes to the back-up copy and library usage clauses as recommended by Microsoft. Microsoft execs report that the drafting of the legislation was influenced by proponents of the EU’s open source movement.”
Here is the full Cablegate cable, which speaks more broadly about Israel’s copyright legislation
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Carol X Weakley 10/18/2006 02:46:18 PM From DB/Inbox: Carol X Weakley
Cable
Text:
S E C R E T TEL AVIV 04106
SIPDIS
CXTelA:
ACTION: ECON
INFO: IPSC SCI IMO CONS RES POL DCM AMB AID ADM FCS
PD
DISSEMINATION: ECON
CHARGE: PROG
APPROVED: ECON:WWEINSTEIN
DRAFTED: ECON:BMASILKO
CLEARED: ECON: JWITOW
VZCZCTVI955
PP RUEHC RUCPDOC
DE RUEHTV #4106/01 2901552
ZNY SSSSS ZZH
P 171552Z OCT 06
FM AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 7010
INFO RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC PRIORITY
S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 TEL AVIV 004106
SIPDIS
DEPARTMENT PLEASE PASS TO USTR: E.SAUMS AND S.DONNELLY
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/13/2016
TAGS: ECON [Economic Conditions], ETRD [Foreign Trade], PGOV [Internal Governmental Affairs], KIPR [Intellectual Property Rights], IS [Israel]
SUBJECT: UPDATE ON ISRAEL'S COPYRIGHT LEGISLATION
REF: A. TEL AVIV 03785
B. TEL AVIV 03843
Classified By: Economic Counselor William Weinstein for reasons 1.4 (b)
and (d)
¶1. (S) Summary: Israel is moving forward with legislation to
modernize and unify its existing copyright law. Three pieces
of pending copyright legislation have a direct impact on U.S.
industry. Working-level contacts at Ministry of Justice
(MoJ), who drafted the legislation, display varying degrees
of flexibility in responding to U.S. industry concerns.
While these concerns tend to focus on the specific provisions
of the legislation (as applicable to a given industry), all
of Posts' contacts oppose the legislation's decriminalization
of end-user piracy and its lack of protection for digital
media. Per Washington's request EconCouns has requested that
the Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Labor (MOITAL) engage
with the MoJ to review the draft legislation and begin
immediate consultations with the USG. End Summary.
---------------------
Status of Legislation
---------------------
¶2. (C) Currently, three different pieces of legislation
related to copyrights -- in various stages of completion --
are being circulated. The 2005 Copyright Bill passed a first
reading in the Knesset on July 20, 2005 and is being
considered by the Knesset Economic Committee. The 2006
Copyright Tribunal Bill was published on July 10, 2006 and
has also passed a first reading and been forwarded to the
Knesset Economic Committee. These two bills will likely be
considered together by the Committee. The Ministry of
Justice is the originator and sponsor of the 2005 Copyright
Bill and the 2006 Copyright Tribunal Bill. U.S. industry has
voiced serious concerns over key provisions of these two
draft pieces of legislation. A private bill submitted by
members of the Meretz party on July 17, 2006 -- aimed at
preventing digital piracy -- has not been voted on by the
Knesset.
-------------------
Ministry of Justice
-------------------
¶3. (S) As the drafter of the Copyright Bill and the Copyright
Tribunal Bill, the MoJ has championed the legislation. With
the resignation of Minister of Justice Haim Ramon, pending an
investigation into allegations of sexual harassment, Meir
Sheetrit assumed the position of acting Minister of Justice
in August 2006. In a September 19 meeting with the
Ambassador, Sheetrit promised to look into the pending
copyright legislation (reftel a). In a follow-up-letter and
phone call to the Ambassador, Sheetrit said that the
copyright legislation had already "passed." (Comment:
Technically Sheetrit is correct. The legislation "passed"
the ministerial committee and was forwarded to the Knesset as
a government bill. However, the legislation is far from
becoming law. It appears as if Sheetrit's staff is telling
him that the legislation is being handled by the Knesset
Economic Committee and is out of their hands. However, past
experience with pharmaceutical IPR legislation championed by
the MOITAL indicates that the drafting Ministry has
considerable influence over the Knesset's consideration of
the legislation, especially draft legislation as long and
technical as the Copyright Bill. End comment). Copyright
legislation at the MoJ is the responsibility of Advocate
Tamir Afori, who has been working on the draft legislation
since joining the MoJ six years ago.
-----------------
Industry Concerns
-----------------
¶4. (S) The software, music, and movie industries agree that
while the Copyright Bill is an improvement on existing law --
a mix of British era legislation -- it fundamentally fails to
implement the necessary safeguards for intellectual property
in a digital world. Another concern shared by the majority
of the copyright industries is the failure of the legislation
to designate end-user piracy as a criminal offense. During
the period of the 2006 Special 301 review, Econoff
highlighted these concerns to Afori at MoJ. His response was
explosive and unexpected -- he railed against U.S. industry
wanting to "make everything a crime" and questioned the logic
in designating it as such, given that Israel has no intention
of prosecuting end-users who commit just a single act of
piracy. Afori commented that he was tired of the U.S.
"hinting" at the problem and proposed that the U.S. either
quote the relevant law requiring that end-user piracy be
declared a criminal offense, or drop the matter.
-----------------
Software Industry
-----------------
¶5. (S) Microsoft Israel has been the most successful of the
interested parties in lobbying for changes in the Copyright
Bill. Government Affairs Manager for Microsoft Israel,
Shai-lee Spigelman, told EconCouns on July 13 that Microsoft
has formed a coalition of foreign and Israeli software
development companies to push for changes in the bill.
Microsoft's key concerns center around the provisions for
creating back-up copies and the unlimited exemptions granted
to public libraries. Anti-piracy manager at Microsoft
Israel, Gil May-Tal, told Econoff that he has also pushed the
MoJ to define end-user piracy as a crime, but found MoJ's
Afori entrenched in opposition to such a change. While
Microsoft wants to see end-user piracy defined as a crime in
the legislation, May-Tal deemed it not worth pushing, and
thereby risking the positive relationship that Microsoft has
built with the Afori. May-Tal said Afori is inclined to
consider changes to the back-up copy and library usage
clauses as recommended by Microsoft. Microsoft execs report
that the drafting of the legislation was influenced by
proponents of the EU's open source movement.
--------------
Movie Industry
--------------
¶6. (C) ALIS, the Motion Picture Association of Israel, has
thus far not commented on the draft copyright legislation.
However, the Cinema Industry Association in Israel wrote to
the Ambassador on September 11 to urge USG support for a
draft proposal submitted by the Meretz Party. The
legislation is aimed at combating digital and on-line piracy.
Among the key provisions of this bill are: prohibiting the
posting of creations on digital networks without the
permission of the creator, prohibiting the listening to or
viewing of pirated copies of creations, and imposing varying
degrees of responsibility on Internet service providers for
the content its users are able to access.
------------------
Recording Industry
------------------
¶7. (S) Some of the most damaging clauses of the Copyright
Bill affect the recording industry. Itshak Sheffer, Managing
Director of the International Federation of Phonographic
Industry (IFPI) Israel, told EconOff that he suspects the MoJ
might be pursuing a discriminatory policy towards the
recording industry in part because IFPI has been successful
in winning several court cases against the MoJ. One of the
industry's main concerns is that the Copyright Bill could
deny foreign sound recordings remuneration for public
broadcast and performance. The recording industry also
expressed concern over the Copyright Tribunal Act --
legislation which will unify the collection of royalties
under one umbrella organization.
----------
Next Steps
----------
¶8. (S) Director of the International Trade Administration at
MOITAL Boaz Hirsch promised EconCouns on October 5 that he
will schedule a meeting including the Director General of the
MoJ and Emboffs to discuss U.S. concerns about the copyright
legislation immediately after the Succot holidays. Post
continues to emphasize with the MOITAL that this legislation
will impact US-Israel trade, and that discussions should not
be confined to MoJ legal staff. The Knesset Economic
Committee is currently led by a Likud MK, and Likud chairman
Bibi Netanyahu has promised to look into the legislation
(reftel b). While Post believes that inclusion of the MOITAL
will broaden discussion of the impact of the legislation on
U.S. industry, concurrent technical consultations between
U.S. legal experts and the MoJ's IPR legal team are essential
to full USG understanding of the legislation. Local analysts
predict that the committee will hold hearings and consider
the legislation section-by-section before recommending any
amendments. During this time the MoJ, if it chooses, will
also be able to recommend changes to the committee.
********************************************* ********************
Visit Embassy Tel Aviv's Classified Website:
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You can also access this site through the State Department's
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********************************************* ********************
CRETZ
Incidentally, for those who are interested in how copyright and patent laws get subverted by the Gates Foundation, we are going to separately post this new video from Max Keiser and Stacy Herbert. █
