Those OiNKing Cleveland SOCA cops!

p2pnet news view | Music:- “Read this if you like a good laugh,” says a Reader’s Write to our Online music royalties deal story.

The comment points to an item in The Register, which in turn links to Britain’s Evening Gazette in Teeside which has a write-up of a serious embarrassment centering on the Big 4 record labels and the Cleveland police — the very same department whose officers have been acting as corporate copyright cops funded by local taxpayers.

In Canada, it’s called SOCAN. Its job? To use legal threats to force the likes of dentists and hairdressers to pay exorbitant royalty fees every time they play music for their patients and customers.

In Britain, it’s the Performing Rights Society (PRS) and, says the Gazette Live, “A police force that launched a crackdown against music piracy may itself be breaching music copyright laws, it has emerged.

“But Cleveland Police chiefs today claimed they would rather spend public cash on fighting crime than paying for music rights.”

Last October, “Cleveland Police’s Organised Crime Unit have been working closely with the Music Industry to uncover a massive piracy scam, the first such international operation in the country,” it boasted in an online statement, going on »»»

The organised crime unit, in conjunction with the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) and the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) have been working closely on the investigation for several months, and today arrested a 24 year old man in connection with Conspiracy to Defraud and Infringement of Copyright Law.

Detective Sergeant Tony Keogh was in charge and according to him, the site, OiNK, “specialized in sharing music and media including pre-release material, this is an infringement on copyright law that in financial terms causes immeasurable loss to the record companies.”

In the statement, “We have been working closely with Interpol and our Dutch colleagues in Amsterdam where the website server is based to ensure that it too was secured at the time of arrest,” he says.

And on behalf of the corporate music industry, “whilst some might view this type of act as a victimless crime there’s no such thing, as the cost of an enterprise such as this will be added to the cost of any legitimate purchases further down the line,” declares chief superintendent Mark Braithwaite, head of crime in Cleveland Police.

Said a p2pnet post on the bust »»»

“Strike, strtike, strike, going in,” says a tense, disembodied voice over a police radio in Britain.

Must be something serious.

And just before that, “The tactics were the same, but this time the target was very different.”

That’s from a reporter who, by an amazing coincidence, happened to find out about the Warner Music, EMI, Vivendi Universal and Sony BMG initiated raid on a 24-year-old man in England just in time to be included.

The man is accused of facilitating the non-existent crime of online file sharing on OiNK and, “The aim was to catch the man while he was logged on to the site,” the reporter continues in a video shot from inside a police car nearing the home of the ’suspect’.

But he’s not alone.

As the videoman follows the police into the man’s house, you see camera flashes popping off.

Next up is local cop enjoying his 15 minutes of fame as the Big 4 milk the situation they created bone dry.

“The police say it is no longer a victimless crime,” the reporter continues, “but they admit few feel sympathy for the multi-billion-dollar record companies being deprived of their profits.”

By another amazing coincidence, the video of the bust turned up on YouTube, as a p2pnet reader pointed out.

British taxpayers will no doubt be delighted to see their hard earned money is being well spent - by Warner Music, EMI, Vivendi Universal and Sony BMG.

Don’t bother to stay tuned.

“Alan Ellis the admin of OiNK, will appear in court along with five users accused of uploading music via the BitTorrent tracker. The six will appear before magistrates to learn if their cases will be sent on to a Crown Court,” says TorrentFreak.

And the apprehension of these wicked, file sharing P2P criminals is largely due to the sterling efforts of the Cleveland cops.

But wait!

“Music licensing authority the Performing Rights Society (PRS) claims many forces have no licence to allow the playing of music in their stations,” said the Gazette Online yesterday, going on:

“A PRS licence is required by law in many cases when music is played outside a domestic home.

“The licence fee - which for a whole police force could run from several hundred to thousands of pounds a year - is applicable to music played on a television, radio or CD player, music played in areas such as staff canteens or social areas, and during a presentation or social event.

“Cleveland Police is among dozens of forces that have not paid up.”

But no worries.

“The legal action is on hold while negotiations take place in a bid to reach a settlement,” the story adds.

After all, what are friends for?

Here’s a video of the bust referred to earlier on.

The Register - BitTorrent crackdown cops fail to pay music copyright fees, September 24, 2008
Evening Gazette - No licence for police, September 24, 2008

BitTorrent crackdown cops fail to pay music copyright fees

Six OiNK accused in court today

By Chris Williams • Get more from this author

Posted in Music and Media, 24th September 2008 11:30 GMT

Cleveland Police, the force that will today bring six people to court for alleged involvement in the OiNK BitTorrent network, does not pay licensing fees to legally play music in its canteens, it has emerged.

Rumours that Cleveland Police was infringing copyright law have been circulating for several months. Yesterday the Middlesborough Gazette reported the force admitted the transgression and said it had not decided whether to pay its Performing Rights Society (PRS) subs.

The PRS collects royalties for artists and record companies from non-domestic performance of recorded copyright music.

A spokeswoman confirmed Cleveland Police's position to El Reg today.

A statement from Cleveland Police Deputy Chief Constable Derek Bonnard said: "We continue to assess the position and are seeking advice to determine if we are required by law to spend a significant amount of public money, which we consider is better committed to crime fighting, in this way." That Quote is priceless

The PRS argues that police forces are required to pay the same as other organisations. It issued a High Court writ against police in Lancashire earlier this year for the same infringment Cleveland has admitted.

PRS said only 11 forces nationwide have paid for the legal right to play copyright music in staff areas. Action against the Lancashire Constabulary has been suspended while the parties attempt to negotiate a settlement.

Depending on where and how it it plays copyright music, Cleveland Police can expect a PRS bill of between a few hundred and a few thousand pounds.

Alan Ellis, the 25-year-old administrator of OiNK, will face Teesside magistrates today on a charge of conspiracy to defraud. Five individuals who were arrested following last year's raids on Ellis and OiNK's servers will also appear, accused of criminal copyright infringement for uploading new trackers to the site.

All of the alleged offences could carry prison sentences. ® Corrupt Cleveland Police Officers.

No licence for Cleveland Police OINK Alan Ellis

I think this amounts to conspiracy to defraud the music industry as
Derek Bonnard clearly conspired with others not to pay. But Cleveland
Police have always been willing to break the law when it suits them.
Opinion by Brian Howes.

Sep 23 2008 by Simon Walton, Evening Gazette

A POLICE force that launched a crackdown against music piracy may itself be breaching music copyright laws, it has emerged.

But Cleveland Police chiefs today claimed they would rather spend public cash on fighting crime than paying for music rights.

Music licensing authority the Performing Rights Society (PRS) claims many forces have no licence to allow the playing of music in their stations.

A PRS licence is required by law in many cases when music is played outside a domestic home.

The licence fee - which for a whole police force could run from several hundred to thousands of pounds a year - is applicable to music played on a television, radio or CD player, music played in areas such as staff canteens or social areas, and during a presentation or social event.

Cleveland Police is among dozens of forces that have not paid up. Last year the force made headlines across the world when it swooped on a Middlesbrough house to crack a suspected international music piracy scam worth hundreds of thousands of pounds.

It is alleged the website, called Oink, involved a private file sharing site with a worldwide membership of 180,000 people. It is said to have allowed the uploading and downloading of pre-release music. The high-profile raid sent shock waves around the internet world.

Now Cleveland Police may itself have fallen foul of music copyright laws.

Other businesses that require a licence if music is played include hairdressers or shops.

The PRS has taken Lancashire Police to the High Court asking for an injunction over the issue. The legal action is on hold while negotiations take place in a bid to reach a settlement.

A PRS spokeswoman said only around 11 police forces in the UK currently hold a licence.

Cleveland Police Deputy Chief Constable Derek Bonnard said: “We continue to assess the position and are seeking advice to determine if we are required by law to spend a significant amount of public money, which we consider is better committed to crime fighting, in this way.”

Six people have been charged in connection with the Oink arrests in October of last year and are due before Teesside Magistrates’ Court.

Tourists must wait for decision over extradition to Cyprus

THE UK GOVERNMENT ALLOWS UK CITIZENS TO BE EXTRADITED EVEN WHEN THEY HAVE BEEN CONVICTED IN THIER ABSENSE TO FACE JAIL TERMS WITHOUT ANY CHANCE OF APPEAL OR RETRIAL.

Two Essex men face months of waiting to find out if they must return to Cyprus to serve a three-year jail sentence for their involvement in a teenager's death.

Luke Atkinson, 24, and Michael Binnington, 23, both from Witham, appeared at City of Westminster Magistrates' Court hoping to discover whether they had won their fight against extradition.

But the case was adjourned to a later date, and it is likely to be taken to the High Court next year before it is resolved.

The two men were passengers in a car driven by Atkinson's uncle Julian Harrington in Protaras, Cyprus, in 2006, when it hit a moped, killing the bike's pillion passenger, Christof Papiris, 17.

Harrington, also from Witham, is serving a 15-year jail sentence after admitting manslaughter and causing grievous bodily harm.

Atkinson and Binnington have said they were only involved "unwittingly" as back seat passengers in a highly drunken state.

They were initially acquitted, but at an appeal hearing in April at the Supreme Court of Cyprus which they did not attend, they were found guilty of conspiracy to cause manslaughter. They were sentenced to three years in prison and European Arrest Warrants were later issued to return them to Cyprus.

District Judge Quentin Purdy has ruled: "The Supreme Court of Cyprus conducted a trial at which both men deliberately absented themselves."

He adjourned the case to September 19 when another hearing date will be set. Both men are on bail.

It must now be decided whether the trial in Cyprus was fair and in compliance with the Human Rights Act and both sides have indicated they will appeal any extradition decision in the High Court, which means the issue is not likely to be resolved until at least the beginning of next year.

 

LIBERTY SHOULD CHALLENGE THE EXTRADITION TREATY IN THE ECHR.