Where’s the Warning Letter for the OiNK Uploaders?
Written by enigmax on July 28, 2008This week, many thousands of warning letters will be received by people in the UK accused of sharing files. Each recipient will get the smallest possible slap on the wrist. Yet today another police bail deadline will come and go for six people accused of doing exactly the same on OiNK. Don’t they deserve letters too?
Today, Alan Ellis, the owner of OiNK, will have his bail extended for an amazing fifth time.
Cleveland police, having originally stated that the charges against Alan would be revealed December 2007, extended the bail for another for two months, only to extend it again until May and then again until the end of June.
When they still weren’t ready to charge anyone by this date, they extended bail again until July 28th 2008. However, today, the police have extended the date again for Alan, and the other six arrested in connection with the case.
The six who were arrested, five men aged between 19 and 33, and a 28-year-old woman, were done so on suspicion of “Conspiracy to Defraud the Music Industry”, and other copyright offenses.
Repeated in the mainstream press such as the BBC, these allegations of serious fraud take on a really sinister tone, but the reality is somewhat different. At most these individuals did what an estimated 6 million others do in the UK on a regular basis - they simply shared files. None of the six are accused of anything more than offenses linked to the uploading of a single album each, yet today they will report again to the police, their lives on hold.
Elsewhere today in the UK, will be the characteristic sound of letters dropping through the front door onto the mat. Some people will be getting bills, others direct mail and junk. Some will be getting well wishes on a happy occasion. Others will be opening an unexpected letter from their ISP which claims they have been caught uploading music by the BPI, that they’ve been very naughty and shouldn’t do it again.
After long negotiations between the music industry and ISPs, along with a considerable amount of government ‘encouragement‘, sending out educational letters was considered a proportionate response to the ‘problem’ of file-sharing. Even the disconnection of uploaders was considered draconian, and there is certainly no suggestion of police involvement.
Shouldn’t the six OiNK uploaders be getting a “friendly” letter and a slap on the wrist too?
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43 Responses
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crazy brits and your illegal downloading
Americans are against illegal downloading. We had you’re back with the whole “England is going to invade Iraq whether the UN likes it or not” thing but piracy is where our friendship ends.
Like how I just blamed all our problems on our only allies?
http://digg.com/tech_news/Where_s_the_Warning_Letter_for_the_OiNK_Uploaders
proper digg link
Ridiculous how the government tries to protect the music industry isn’t it? “Conspiracy to Defraud the Music Industry”? Come on.
It’s not “amazing” that the bail terms have been/will be extended, it’s SOP in the UK where evidence is still being gathered by police prior to any charges being brought before being presented to the CPS who ultimately will decide whether or not a prosecution will take place.
Thats the beauty of selective law enforcement.
1. Make laws so silly and so broad (like, prohibit copying information) that practically everybody is “guilty”.
2. Make the punishments severe beyond any measure (like going to jail for sending someone a file).
3. Pick only the people you dont like for enforcement and then make examples of them by punishing them “to the maximum extent under the law”.
3. ???
4. Fourth Reich!!!1 err… I meant Profit!!!
Just once more, just once more… or 5 times?
Well, seems like neither the police nor the music industry have any usable evidence… not as if any would exist… probably…
Well, I really wonder how long this will go on…
i think that sucks. Poor guy in jail for nothing..
The people responsible for this should have there cheek bones hit with a hammer.
If those people were to ruin my life like that, I will personally burn there houses down. You corrupt pieces of shit, I hope you all get your faces ripped off by a shotgun.
Im gonna download, im gonna upload, im gonna burn, im gonna copy, IM GONNA DO WHATEVER THE F*CK I WANT.
“Conspiracy to Defraud the Music Industry”??!?!
Well in that case I’m taking Brittney, Girls Aloud and all the stupid, crap-making, pop-trash, feckwits, who can’t tell one end of a musical scale from the other, to court for EXACTLY THE SAME FECKING REASON!
I am sick and tired of hearing this crap about “Oh dear the music industry is dying”. No your crap pop-music industry is dying, ‘cos little Johnny and little Mary rip MP3s of eDonkey and Kazza on Mummy and Daddy’s connection. Sorry but other forms of underground music, like indie and metal are thriving because now we the fans can communicate directly with those we choose to support, we pay them for their hard work directly knowing that some fat-arsed, greedy prick music exec ain’t flying down to Rio with his bimbo secretary on my and the band’s hard earned cash!!!!
Is there any way we can put a Jihad on the RCIAA? A few boom jackets in Executive offices would make the world a much better place, and then those who go would at least deserve it.
@Mr Roboto
Was there some message there? Maybe sarcasm?
Just to clear things up for you. Americas war on WEAPONS OF MASS DECEPTION was started by the yanks. You know the iraq war!!!
The UK started the war in afgahnistan not in iraq. Blair was the one who said “we will help america in the war to win OIL, sorry I mean against terror”
Yeah you know what they say ( I cant tell you who they are)about the american military ” all the gear, but no idea” with respect to the savvy american who knows whats what.
To round it all off, america’s view on file sharing? Fines and imprisonment and maybe guantanamo bay for the extreme uploader. he he he.
Glad my country doesn’t give a fuck, to a certain extent.
I have a simple discussion forum (no registration required) for discussing these matters:
http://www.28chan.org/fs/
In any case, what can we do about this?
This can go one of two ways, they can either make an example of these people in light in today’s warning letters and anti p2p climate.
Or they realise that no charges can be given to these individuals and try to sweep the facade under the carpet.
As my shrink says everything is ok in moderation, alchohol drugs and even torrent freak.
Such shame, uploading music. I pray that a copy of a letter will be posted somewhere so we can get a good laugh. I get e-mails from Comcast all the time about downloading. I reply with rickroll.avi
The police dont have enough evidence to pass onto the CPS. They dont need this long - i reckon it will be dropped
They are ruining his life! They deserve death!
I’m with #5 on this one. As much as one would like to think the delay could mean the government is having trouble building a case or that it might be dropped, it’s really just a typical legal delay.
Considering the amount of crap that was probably on Oink’s servers (the discussion forums alone are probably staggering), it only makes sense that they’d take their sweet time sifting through it.
This will see it’s day in court. Sad, but true.
“To round it all off, america’s view on file sharing? Fines and imprisonment and maybe guantanamo bay for the extreme uploader. he he he.
Glad my country doesn’t give a fuck, to a certain extent.”
I don’t know if you’re American (Probably not, given your spelling of ‘favorite’), but TONS of people file share in the US, and only big uploaders/releasers get fined and sent to jail. The police have never arrested someone for uploading a single album, like they did over there. We DO have quite a bit of lawsuits/warning letters from ISPs, however.
I can only hope those 6 people aren’t living bad because of this. I know for a fact having a pending legal issue can be pretty hard.
“Today, Alan Ellis, the owner of OiNK, will have his bail extended for an amazing fifth time.”
No right to a speedy trial in the UK.
@22
Yeah, this time till the 10th of September haha.
Violence is needed to free him, start hurting people responsible for this, thats the only message they will understand.
People need to learn that when you do stupid shit, you get hurt. Thats how people stay in there place. When you take away consequences.. you end up with shit like this, people walking all over him and he can do nothing about it.
your a mug Mr Roboto!
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