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Spanish whiz kid fights copyright case
(China Daily)
Updated: 2009-06-10 09:46 MADRID: Pablo Soto's story may be every computer whiz kid's dream - or nightmare. After leaving school at 16 to support his family, he managed to eke out a living doing what he loves most: designing computer programs.
Then in 2001, the Madrid native launched Blubster, one of the world's most popular peer-to-peer Internet file-sharing programs of recent years - with no training and operating out of his grandmother's apartment. Now Soto may become a victim of his own success as he finds himself the lone defendant in the latest major legal battle by the mighty music industry against Internet piracy; a Madrid court is expected to rule this month. The case, although similar to others in Europe and the US, is being closely watched on both sides of the Atlantic because Spain is ranked as one of the world's worst Internet piracy offenders. "We are attacking companies who are profiting by developing applications that are used for piracy," said Antonio Guisasola, president of Promusicae, the Spanish record label association that includes Sony, Universal, Warner and EMI. It is suing Soto for 13 million euro ($18.1 million). Promusicae brands Soto an Internet parasite who robs artists and record companies by facilitating illegal downloads of music and other copyrighted protected material with his P2P programs. Soto, 29, said Blubster is a fully legal Internet tool - admittedly one designed precisely to skirt the legal loopholes that nabbed Napster in 2001 - and that he is not responsible for what people do with that tool. "My programs are not just for illegal music downloads. P2P file-sharing has many more uses," he said. Examples of so-called legitimate uses include downloading historic speeches, uncopyrighted music and public domain intellectual property such as music and books whose copyright has expired, he said. Soto recounted that he designed Blubster out of curiosity and initially distributed it among friends. But within days, he found that nearly a million people worldwide had downloaded it. He admits he makes money from advertising but insists this is perfectly legal. He said that claims he has made loads of money are ridiculous, arguing that he has never had more than euro15,000 in his bank account, still operates out of his grandmother's apartment and lives in a rented flat. Downloading copyrighted material is illegal in Spain but not a criminal offense, and courts consistently throw out cases on grounds that it is an infringement only if used for commercial profit. This stance not only infuriates music companies but irritates the US government and that country's powerful entertainment lobby. "Internet piracy in Spain has reached an epidemic level," the US Congressional International Anti-Piracy Caucus said in a recent report. Soto's lawyer, Javier de la Cueva, argues that the US reports are based solely on industry figures and not backed by independent assessments. He recognizes, however, that while the likes of Blubster may be undermining the music industry the time has come for the entire industry to change. "You can't stop this movement. There is a new social reality. Industry must embrace technological developments, not fight them," he said. AP
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