Aaron's chunk of the web

Just something else from slashdot that further goes along with the whole "IPOD SCAM"

Do you wonder what all those free iPods links are about? Do you wonder why apparently rational Slashdot users would use their .sig line to push an offer that seems little more than a thinly veiled pyramid scheme? Answers to these questions can be found in this NYT article (personal information, with no free iPod, is required). The plan itself seems simple. Rat out your friends to advertisers, and get a free gadget. The firm in question, Gratis, Inc, gets a bounty on each customer. The firm claims to have a revenue of $15 million in 2004. They claim to give away 500 iPods a week. If, as the article claims, each contact earns a bounty of around $50, we might presume that 1 in 12 contacts get a free iPod. This firm seem fairly upfront. Another firm mentioned in the article, Consumer Research Corporation, seems much less so. As always, read the fine print.

Posted by at 14:12 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)

Well, i finally decided to break down and get a new camera. Its actually pretty sweet, check it out: Product Link

Posted by at 19:10 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)

Hurray I have a scarf! ... thanks Autumn

Posted by at 09:02 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)

Re: Copyright infringement

Dear Sir or Madam:

I am contacting you on behalf of the Recording Industry Association of
America, Inc. (RIAA) and its member record companies. The RIAA is a
trade association whose member companies create, manufacture, and
distribute approximately ninety (90) percent of all legitimate sound
recordings sold in the United States. Under penalty of perjury, we
submit that the RIAA is authorized to act on behalf of its member
companies in matters involving the infringement of their sound
recordings, including enforcing their copyrights and common law rights on the Internet.

We believe a user on your network is offering an infringing sound
recording for download through a peer to peer application. We have
attached below the details of the infringing activity.

We have a good faith belief that this activity is not authorized by
copyright owners, their agent, or the law. We are asking for your
immediate assistance in stopping this unauthorized activity.
Specifically, we request that you remove or disable access to the infringing sound recording.

We believe it is in everyone's interest for music consumers to be
better educated about the subject of copyright law and music. In
addition to taking steps to notify this network user about the illegal
nature of this activity, we encourage you to refer him/her to the MUSIC
Coalition's website at www.musicunited.org. The site contains valuable
information about what's legal and what's not when it comes to copying music.

You should understand that this letter constitutes notice to you that
this network user may be liable for the infringing activity occurring
on your network. In addition, under the Digital Millennium Copyright
Act, if you ignore this notice, your institution may also be liable for
any resulting infringement. This letter does not constitute a waiver of
any right to recover damages incurred by virtue of any such
unauthorized activities, and such rights as well as claims for other relief are expressly retained.
Moreover, this letter does not constitute a waiver of our members'
right to sue the user at issue for copyright infringement.

Thank you in advance for your prompt assistance in this matter. If you
have any questions, please feel free to contact me via e-mail at
antipiracy2@riaa.com, via telephone at (202) 775-0101, or via mail at
RIAA, 1330 Connecticut Avenue, N.W., Suite 300, Washington, D.C., 20036.

Please reference Case ID < ********> in any response or communication
regarding this infringement.


Sincerely,

Genevieve Michaud
Online Copyright Protection
RIAA

Posted by at 13:11 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)