[mousejockey]

News link for those that missed it http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&ncid=70&e=3&cid=70&u=/cn/20020522/tc_cn/kazaa__morpheus_legal_case_collapsin g

[eaglefire]

quote:

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crushed by litigation too expensive for start-ups to fight

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quote:

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"I've been informed by my client that they cannot sustain the burn rate for legal fees," Bridges said.

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The Tower come a-crashin' down ....

[ 05-22-2002: Message edited by: eaglefire ]

[buckworks]

The sad thing here is that it's being painted as a David and Goliath situation where Kazaa and Morpheus are the good little guys and the record companies etc. are the big bad guys.

There was no mention Morpheus et al.'s proclivity for theft in other directions beside music. Does anyone know of any contacts in the music industry who might find our recent (and not over yet) problems with Morpheus stealing affiliate links to be useful grist for their mill?

[eaglefire]

I've a feeling our success has a lot to do with Streamcasts' legal/financial problems - they have their hands full with the record companies. At this rate they may not be in business too much longer.

[Haiko de Poel, Jr.]

Elizabeth,

quote:

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There was no mention Morpheus et al.'s proclivity for theft in other directions beside music. Does anyone know of any contacts in the music industry who might find our recent (and not over yet) problems with Morpheus stealing affiliate links to be useful grist for their mill?

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There was no real mention of the pilfering for a reason.

Kazaa is much harder to get into compliance ... but God willing, together, we can do that also!

Let the towers fall ... They will shoot themselves in their, respective, legal feet!

Haiko

[Haiko de Poel, Jr.]

BTW --- CJ PID 1071735 (which I believe to be one of many Kazaa ids) has been whacking some affiliate sites lately ... I'm seriously on it!

Haiko

[Dynamoo]

Also picked up by sfgate.com and Slashdot - the sfgate.com article mentions transfer of ownership to Vanuatu.

[icicle]

>The Tower come a-crashin' down ....

Yup. This is as good a demonstration of that piece of arcanery as we're ever likely to see!

I think, for future reference, I'll note down the sheer *imminence* of the Tower.



I

[ 05-23-2002: Message edited by: Icicle ]

[Pete]

I read earlier today (can't remember link.. duh) that kazaa was filing for bankruptcy, but that the directors had already set up a near identical company to continue on where kazaa had left off. Hopefully it's one of those factless rumours.

[icicle]

No this is just how they'll do it. We have a respite from scumware ATM but it won't last. We have to keep stamping on it as it arises.

I think sooner or later they will decide to fence off part of the web with their proprietory darkside browsers with only their own merchants accessible. This will rely on a certain amount of gullibility on the part of an increasingly sophisticated consumer audience.

It is an attempt probably doomed to failure. Everyone else will refer to themselves as 'the free web' and laugh at the hapless little consumers trapped behind the darkside web until out of sheer embarassment, they emerge into daylight.

And I wouldn't feel too bad about the David and Goliath PR spin on all this. It is said 'you can achieve anything you like so long as you don't mind who takes the credit'. They are just preparing the ground for a non too secret re-emergence at some time in the future.

I should imagine they'd planned a bankruptcy anyway. I just don't think they'd planned it *this soon*. They'd planned for us to subsidize a much longer run at the courts while they work on the PR and squirrel away large amounts of readies.

Oh well. Time for Plan B.

I think it is interesting to note where the origin of the Its Not Us Doing Illegal Stuff Its Our Users defence lies - A *Dutch* court???

They expected a Dutch precedent to stand up in the US?? Heh.

On those grounds alone I shall immediately set up a nice brothel (it'll give the apprentices something to do) then apply to CJ for a merchant account.

You won't all mind being paid in hash, will you?


I

[ 05-23-2002: Message edited by: Icicle ]

[Dynamoo]

quote:

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On those grounds alone I shall immediately set up a nice brothel (it'll give the apprentices something to do) then apply to CJ for a merchant account.

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Heheh

Since the Netherlands government legalised euthenasia too, maybe I could set up an online business for that. Sell cyanide over the web, ship it to the suicidal and pay affiliates 10% for every confirmed death? Or would CJ not like that even though I could argue its legality in a Netherlands court of law?

[net4biz]

Going to Vanatu eh?

Just goes to show you how dumb they are...

Vanatu is the home waters of huge schools of Tiger Sharks and is renowned for it's big game fishing.

Vanatu has maybe 3 laws and 2 of them are never enforced.

My guess is Guido would love to take a big game fishing trip. We know where the fish are...and now we know where the bait is too.

LOL.

[icicle]

Ooh goody! An ABW outing!


I

[ecomcity]

Wasn't Elvis spotted surfing off the beach on that Island country? Maybe he's the secret financier trying to get paid for his music downloads.