EFFector       Vol. 14, No. 19       Aug 10, 2001     [email protected]

  A Publication of the Electronic Frontier Foundation     ISSN 1062-9424

   In the 179th Issue of EFFector (now with over 28,500 subscribers!):

    * Please Donate Your Tax Refund to EFF
    * Attention Musicians: Sign up to Play at EFF's Music Share In on
      September 8th
    * Artists and Audiences Strike a New Deal with Open Licensing of
      Music
    * EFF Speaks at O'Reilly Conference in DC - Monday, September 17
      2001
    * EFF Thanks LabTam Finland for Generous Software Donation
    * Administrivia

  For more information on EFF activities & alerts: http://www.eff.org/

  To join EFF or make an additional donation:
  http://www.eff.org/support/
  EFF is a member-supported non-profit. Please sign up as a member
  today!
    _________________________________________________________________

Donate your tax refund to the EFF!

  We need your help now more than ever! Please make a US-tax-deductible
  contribution to the Electronic Frontier Foundation!

   http://www.eff.org/support/
    _________________________________________________________________


Attention Musicians: Sign Up to Play at EFF's Share-In Music Festival

    EFF Unplugged: Music Share-In
    Saturday, September 8, 2001
    Stanyan Meadow, Golden Gate Park, San Francisco (Corner of Haight
    and Stanyon)
    2 p.m. - 5 p.m.

  The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) would like to invite you to
  participate in an open air concert event for everyone who loves music.
  EFF Unplugged will feature musicians from around the Bay Area
  performing acoustically in Golden Gate Park. Artists participating in
  this event will permit recording of their performances by those in
  attendance in support of EFF's Open Audio License (OAL).

  The OAL was developed to help artists share their work with others
  without giving up the recognition they deserve for creating the art.
  Based on the open source and free software initiatives for software
  development, the open audio license encourages artists to share with
  one another and their fans and to build upon the works of others.

  Adoption of the OAL does not mean that an artist does not get
  compensated for his or her work. On the contrary--the OAL permits
  artists to share single tracks or performances, with recognition, that
  could lead to sales of additional music. EFF is extremely sensitive to
  supporting new models of music distribution in the digital world that
  see more money going to the artists themselves. One of the great
  qualities of the Internet is that packaging and distributing music,
  which is where most of the money is currently spent by record
  companies, is trivial. EFF is committed to developing tools that
  empower artists to take control over their own art and to be
  compensated appropriately for their works.

  EFF believes that many of the laws and technologies being developed
  today to protect intellectual property actually harm the public's
  First Amendment and fair use rights and make criminals of people doing
  perfectly legitimate things. We are striving to help artists realize
  the full potential of the Internet for reaching their fans by
  challenging restrictive laws in courtrooms and through public
  education events, like this one.

  In addition to several stages of acoustic music, the Share-In will
  showcase numerous booths hosted by EFF and outside sponsors, including
  artists' rights organizations and independent labels. For more
  information about participating in EFF's Music Share-In, contact:

    Katina Bishop, EFF Director of Education and Offline Activism,
      +1 415-436-9333 x101,
      [email protected]

  More information about the Share-In:
    http://www.eff.org/events/share-in/

  Information about EFF's Open Audio License is available at:
    http://www.eff.org/IP/Open_licenses/

  EFF is the leading civil liberties organization working to protect
  rights in the digital world. Founded in 1990, EFF actively encourages
  and challenges everyone to support free expression, privacy, and
  openness in the information society. EFF is a member-supported
  organization and maintains one of the most linked-to websites in the
  world at:
    http://www.eff.org/
    _________________________________________________________________


Artists and Audiences Strike a New Deal with Open Licensing of Music

 By Robin D. Gross, Esq.

  Artists' reputations are their number one assets. Whether they earn
  their living by live performance fees, CD or merchandising sales,
  subscription or sponsorship fees, advertising, or a variety of other
  revenue-generating models, the more artists are known and appreciated
  by the public, the better positioned they are is to seek and obtain
  fees for their creative services.

  Now imagine a world full of musicians, all creating, exchanging ideas
  and building upon the works of others -- a true artist's collective.
  Digital technology makes this possible. The revolutionary ease of
  copying and distribution of music over the Internet allows musicians
  to reach millions of people around the globe at minimal cost; at the
  same time, the technology truly dissolves the boundaries between who
  can be considered a creator and who is merely a consumer of art.
  Musicians would have the opportunity to draw upon and truly build from
  the works of others like never before. DJs could wade into an
  increasing pool of music to broadcast or webcast without legal
  restrictions. Artists would finally have a way to establish a direct
  connection with their audiences. All this is possible through open
  licensing.

  The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) was founded in 1990 to
  protect civil liberties like freedom of expression and privacy rights
  in the electronic world. EFF recently released the Open Audio License
  with terms under which artists can choose to distribute their own
  songs if they wish. It is EFF's hope that the license will empower the
  artistic community and promote freedom of expression by taking
  advantage of law and technology.

  Original songs that artists choose to release under the Open Audio
  License may be copied and shared with friends or publicly performed by
  anyone without restrictions or royalties, so long as credit is
  provided to the artist. The license terms strike a new deal between
  artists and the public, opening up greater opportunities for musicians
  worldwide who want to touch the most hearts and minds with their
  message.

  Open licensing allows artists to continue to profit from their music
  released under the license in many of the same traditional ways they
  always have, such as CD sales, live performance revenues,
  merchandising, etc. Artists can also release one track of a CD under
  the open license as a promotional tool to come to the website and buy
  the entire CD.

  In many respects, this idea is not revolutionary. Record labels and
  artists regularly release free songs for the publicity value. It
  should come as no surprise that the more an artist is heard, the
  better her record and concert sales are and the more invitations to
  provide other musical services she receives.

  One real possibility for artist revenues in an electronic age that is
  compatible with the open licensing is upfront fees for musical
  services such as composition. Artists' livelihood may shift away from
  one of payment for music as product to one of music as a service. The
  rules of the game may be changing, but artists will adapt to a home in
  the digital environment where greater opportunities await them.

  Just as lawyers are paid fees for their services of drafting
  contracts, artists can be commissioned to compose and record original
  songs to, for example, commemorate weddings or births, which can be
  further distributed to family, friends and heirs throughout time. The
  industrial era for music distribution revolved around a model of mass
  production of few songs that would be sold to all. Digital technology
  allows creators to cultivate the value of individual customization of
  music, something much more personal.

  In the digital world, artists who wed their income solely to fees per
  copies of goods sold seem to be selling themselves short. Since we are
  moving toward an environment where any intellectual creation can and
  will be copied and distributed with the click of a mouse, to tie
  artist revenue to fees for copies distributed also seems to be the
  surest way for artists to starve.

  Rather than shoe-horning an old revenue model into a new technological
  environment, as "digital rights management" (copy-prevention systems)
  or other digital audio security schemes attempt, open licensing takes
  advantage of the properties of digital technology, like ease of
  copying and distributing. Artists' fans become their top promoters, by
  passing on the music that they like to friends along with means to
  connect with the artists, such as Web or e-mail addresses. This kind
  of "viral marketing" or super-distribution of artists' music provides
  an unprecedented opportunity to independent artists around the world
  to pursue their passions. The challenge is now to the electronic
  pioneers to use these new tools to build new business models or new
  twists on the old ones that sustain and enhance artists' livelihood in
  a digital world.

  For more information about open licensing, including EFF's model Open
  Audio License (OAL), see:
    http://www.eff.org/IP/Open_licenses/
    _________________________________________________________________


EFF Speaks at O'Reilly Conference in DC - Monday, September 17, 2001

 Emergent Computing Policy Roundtable

  Peer-to-peer computing and web services bring fundamental shifts to
  information and entertainment services--shifts that have major legal,
  social, and moral repercussions. On Monday, September 17, 2001, Tim
  O'Reilly brings together legal, political, and technology experts at
  the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington DC for a no-holds-barred
  roundtable discussion of the promise and perils of P2P and web
  services. We invite you to join in this event, which is open and free
  to the public. An audience Q&A follows the formal roundtable
  discussion. Confirmed roundtable participants include:
    * Tim O'Reilly, O'Reilly & Associates (and EFF
      Boardmember-Emeritus), Moderator
    * Manus Cooney, Napster
    * Jon Potter, Digital Media Association (DiMA)
    * Marc Rotenberg, Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC)
    * Peter Jaszi, Digital Future Coalition (DFC)
    * Cindy Cohn, Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF)
    * Jenny Toomey, Future of Music Coalition (FMC)
    * Dan Gilmor, San Jose Mercury News

  Roundtable participants will discuss such issues as:
    * Does MP3 filesharing on Napster--and now scores of other
      systems--represent widespread disregard for the rights of
      copyright owners? Or does the Napster lawsuit represent an attempt
      to increase content providers' ability to control new distribution
      technologies?
    * Will we hold technology makers responsible for the activities of
      all technology users? If not, how will we control the tools?
    * Do DMCA limitations on breaking encryption schemes represent an
      unreasonable limit on innovation and fair use, or needed
      protections against dangerous crackers?
    * How should the DMCA apply to technologies that have many uses,
      only some of which threaten copyright owners?
    * Are consumers better off with digital access to music, movies, and
      books? Or are personal and fair use rights being eroded?

  O'Reilly & Associates CEO Tim O'Reilly is an Internet activist and
  leader in the open source movement. The roundtable is taking place in
  conjunction with the O'Reilly Peer-to-Peer and Web Services
  Conference, September 18-21, 2001, at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in
  Washington DC.

  EFF staff and board will also be presenting at various sessions
  throughout the conference.

  For more information about the organizations represented at the
  roundtable, visit these web sites:
    http://www.eff.org/         - Electronic Frontier Foundation
    http://www.napster.com/                            - Napster
    http://www.digmedia.org/         - Digital Media Association
    http://www.epic.org/ - Electronic Privacy Information Center
    http://www.dfc.org/               - Digital Future Coalition
    http://www.futureofmusic.org/    - Future of Music Coalition

   CONFERENCE UPDATE:

  On Monday, September 17th, there will be a number of peer-to-peer and
  web services community meetings. For more information about these
  important events, please visit the conference web site:
    http://conferences.oreilly.com/p2p/

   CONFERENCE DETAILS

  Tuesday September 18th features a full day of tutorials including
  .NET, Groove, JXTA, SOAP, Jabber, OpenCOLA, Programming Web Services,
  and an insightful technology overview by the program committee:
  O'Reilly Networks Maven Rael Dornfest, OpenCOLA Co-Founder and Chief
  Evangelist Cory Doctorow, Hack the Planet weblog editor Wes Felter,
  and WorldOS Corp. CEO Lucas Gonze. Wednesday the 19th marks the
  opening of the conference and exposition hall. As is customary for all
  O'Reilly conferences, you can expect deeply technical and provocative
  session presentations. Our lively exhibit hall features a
  hands-on-look at the latest devices and technologies. And don't
  forget, during the breaks the hallways will be teeming with vigorous
  community discussions about the P2P and Web Services space.
    _________________________________________________________________


EFF Thanks LabTam Finland for Generous Software Donation

  The EFF wants to thank the folks at LabTam Finland for their generous
  software donation of their WinaXe product. WinaXe is a Windows program
  that allows Windows to run as an Linux Xwindows terminal. This allows
  the Windows users to run Unix gui applications and even run an entire
  Unix desktop on their laptop computers. By using this product our
  users can run Windows and Linux at the same time and can cut and paste
  information between the two operating systems. And a single Linux
  server provides the desktop for all our Linux users. LabTam website:
    http://www.labf.com/

  The EFF appreciates companies like LabTam who make useful software and
  donate licenses to EFF. This helps us become more effective in our
  struggle to protect civil liberties.
    _________________________________________________________________


Administrivia

  EFFector is published by:

  The Electronic Frontier Foundation
  454 Shotwell Street
  San Francisco CA 94110-1914 USA
  +1 415 436 9333 (voice)
  +1 415 436 9993 (fax)
  http://www.eff.org/

  Editors:
  Katina Bishop, EFF Education & Offline Activism Director
  Stanton McCandlish, EFF Technical Director/Webmaster
  [email protected]

  To Join EFF online, or make an additional donation, go to:
  http://www.eff.org/support/

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