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EFFector - Volume 21, Issue 35 - EFF Has Filed to Bust Seer Systems’ Bogus Internet Music Patent

EFFECTOR

EFFector - Volume 21, Issue 35 - EFF Has Filed to Bust Seer Systems’ Bogus Internet Music Patent

EFFector Vol. 21, No. 35  October 15, 2008  editor@eff.org

A Publication of the Electronic Frontier Foundation
ISSN 1062-9424

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In our 487th issue:

* EFF HAS FILED TO BUST SEER SYSTEMS' BOGUS INTERNET MUSIC
PATENT, which threatens to compromise existing media
standards and hamper Internet music innovation. The
illegitimate patent is for a system and method for joining
different musical data types together in a file,
distributing them over the Internet, then playing that file
-- but descriptions of the technology were published a
number of times before Seer Systems made its claim.
http://www.eff.org/press/archives/2008/10/08

* LAST WEEK, WHISTLEBLOWERS PROVIDED SHOCKING DETAILS ABOUT
NSA EMPLOYEES intercepting and sharing the phone calls of
U.S. service members and non-governmental aid organizations
like the International Red Cross. The damning accounts
confirm that abuses of power within the intelligence
community are unraveling the privacy of Americans, despite
the hollow reassurances from surveillance apologists in
Congress.
http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2008/10/new-nsa-whistleblowers

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EFF Updates

* McCain Campaign Feels DMCA Sting
The campaign's letter to YouTube highlights the threat that
DMCA takedowns pose to fair uses and legitimate political
speech. 
http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2008/10/mccain-campaign-feels-dmca-sting

* Why Hollywood Hates RealDVD
The motion picture industry is fighting tooth and nail, not
to "fight piracy" but to control innovation.
http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2008/10/why-hollywood-hates-realdvd

* Freedom Not Fear 2008
This international campaign seeks to protect fundamental
freedoms in the face of a hyperbolic rhetoric of fear.
http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2008/10/freedom-not-fear-2008

* Government Painfully Fuzzy on the Effects of Infringement
With misplaced faith in bogus statistics, the U.S. Chamber
of Commerce demonstrates that the government's approach to
copyright infringement is to flail wildly in the dark.
http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2008/10/government-painfully-fuzzy-effects-infringement

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miniLinks

~ NSA Spying Overseas: Legal or Not?
Marty Lederman asks whether NSA spying on Americans abroad
-- as described by new whistleblowers -- is a violation of
FISA or the 4th Amendment.
http://balkin.blogspot.com/2008/10/was-nsas-indiscriminate-wiretapping-of.html

~ Savage Sued for Takedown
Stanford's Fair Use Project says the radio host sent a
bogus takedown notice to YouTube.
http://cyberlaw.stanford.edu/node/5884

~ Police Put Activists on Terror List
Maryland police illegally entered the names of law-abiding
political activists into federal databases that track
terrorism.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/10/07/AR2008100703245_pf.html

For more miniLinks:
http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2008/10/minilinks-2008-10-14

For global miniLinks:
http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2008/10/global-minilinks-2008-10-11

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Announcements

* Calling All Students! Join EFF for Less!

EFF defends the rights of students -- whether they are
researching transit system vulnerabilities or spreading the
word about serious e-voting vulnerabilities. If you are a
student who cares about digital rights, please consider
supporting our work by making a small donation and becoming
an EFF member for less than our regular membership price!

For the EFF Student Membership donation page:
http://secure.eff.org/students

* Special EFF Member Discount on "Take Control Ebooks"

Our friends at TidBITS Publishing are offering all EFF
members a permanent 30% discount on Apple-oriented Take
Control ebooks. Written by some of the top names in the Mac
world, Take Control ebooks strive to be focused, in-depth,
and highly practical. The PDF-based ebooks use carefully
designed layout and typography for easy onscreen reading
and printing, and they include bookmarks, clickable links,
and a "Check for Updates" link that lets readers access
free updates and new editions. Best of all? They're totally
free of DRM.

If you're an EFF member and you'd like to take advantage of
this offer, send an email to membership@eff.org to receive
the discount voucher code.

For the Take Control ebook catalog:
http://www.takecontrolbooks.com/catalog.html

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Administrivia

EFFector is published by:
The Electronic Frontier Foundation
 http://www.eff.org/about

Editor:
Richard Esguerra, EFF Activist
 richard@eff.org

Membership & donation queries:
 membership@eff.org

General EFF, legal, policy, or online resources queries:
 information@eff.org

Back issues of EFFector are available at:
 http://www.eff.org/effector/

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