ISPs snooping for the record companies
Regarding: Web disconnection threat to downloaders.
One word for these muppets: encryption. If ISPs can't determine what is being transmitted, will it come down to how the data is being transmitted? "BitTorrent traffic Sir - we can't tell what is being transmitted, but we assume it's illegal". Will it simply be a case of banning by protocol? Or transfer amount? Or will encrypted data be assumed to be pirated material? "3MB being transmitted using SSL - that's no payment form with credit card details, it must be piracy!" How long will it be before the likes of SSH are branded tools of "hackers" and pirates because they prevent ISPs from peeking at your data?
I love the notion that if you have nothing to hide, why should you need to encrypt your data; we should all just lay down and allow ISPs to monitor any data we send or receive for the sake of the profits of record companies.
Music piracy
Regarding Record labels seek piracy clampdown.
I'm still amazed the music industry is full of such clueless people. They resisted the technology, then tried to apply their outdated ideas to control it and are now complaining that online sales aren't generating as much money as the loss in CD sales.
The reason they are losing money is because of their own mistakes. Stop treating customers like thieves: drop all DRM. Price fairly, let us choose the songs we wish to purchase and make all music available online (including back catalogues). Yes - customers might just buy the songs they like. Shock horror! The concept is not difficult to grasp: I hear a song I like, I can buy it online at a choice of stores (including the iTunes Music Store please!), have it in a matter of seconds and then play it from my computer, my music player or on whatever device I like, regardless of my Operating System.
Ways for record companies to encourage piracy: I hear a song and I can't buy it online. I want that song - I'll pay a fair price - but I can't buy it online. I can grab it from a YouTube music video, I can find it on a file sharing network - but I can't give you the damn money to buy the song legally because??? "Oh, but you can buy a CD" - I don't want to have to go the fracking music shop to pay for a whole album made of plastic that will just sit on my shelf! I just want to buy that song now! I now it's perfectly possible with current technology - the reason I can't? The damn record companies who are complaining about losing money! Or, I can buy it online - but only with DRM. "Oh sorry, that will not work on your platform or your media player". So I can't legally buy it online in a format I can play - hmm, what are my choices now? Another concept linked to old ways of thinking: release dates. A song is played on a radio station - but is not out to buy yet. The bits exist somewhere - I understand that physical items like CDs must be made and distributed; but the time to enable that song to be purchased online? Minutes? A basic premise: stop getting in the way of the customer!
A simple message for the record companies: some people will always pirate and it doesn't matter what you do to try and prevent it. If someone can play a piece of music, then they can copy it. You can't control the technology. You can try and use legislation, but you are dealing with a global technology - and the legislation will not be passed and enforced globally. But some people want to pay for music - and it's your own stupidity preventing them from doing so!
And this applies to those who make and distribute films and television programmes: the longer you use outdated models and try to fight against the technology, the more money you will lose.