Ed: We’ve already mentioned on UKIP Daily (see here, and read the pertinent letter) that we, the editors of UKIP-affiliated news sites – Darrell Goodliffe and Reece Coombes of Kipper Central, Jordan James of Politicalite, Luke Nash-Jones of MBGA News and myself for UKIP Daily – are going to kickstart a campaign on this EU Directive which will indeed kill the internet as we know it stone dead. Just as with the GDPR directive which had us all scramble to fulfil an unnecessary directive aimed at Big Tech firms but of course applicable to us all, so will this new Directive make all of us scramble – only this time, it will indeed be us, the little people, who will be closed down because we are, in the view of our ‘betters’, purveyors of ‘fake news’ whenever we point out their lies. From blog sites to youtube videos, from official twitter accounts to facebook pages: we’ll be deprived of our right to Free Speech – in the guise of ‘only protecting copyright and fair use. That’s the future – and our benighted Government, which in spite of Brexit has already assured Brussels that even after we leave we will comply with their GDPR Directive, is bound to cave in and follow Brussels Diktat.
We cannot, will not let this happen – so in the coming days and weeks you’ll find more articles on this, more videos, and we’re working on sample letters which can be sent to MEPs and MPs. UKIP is the Party standing for Free Speech – this is our fight. Moreover – this fight shows yet again that our fight for Brexit is not, cannot be over. If our government strives to keep us under the Brussels boots, then we all can say good-bye to the most important right without which there can be no democracy, the Right of Freedom of Speech.
Here is Luke Nash-Jones firing the starting shot with his article which was first published in MBGA News and which we re-publish with his kind permission:
EU KILLS the Internet: Memes are BANNED
For centuries, we just had newspapers owned by rich businesses. Then the BBC owned by the government. Just like in the movie the Matrix, they controlled what we see and think. Then along came the Internet! An open forum, where people can share what they think. Memes (see here for the internet-relevant explanation). Rightwing articles. Blogging. Videos. Brexit vote. Trump wins. Now the globalists are striking back!
EU’s Legislative Committee voted to adopt two controversial new rules – known as Article 11 and Article 13 of the EU Copyright Directive – kill the Internet as we know it.
Until now, the so-called E-Commerce Directive has given online platforms broad protection from being subject to copyright penalties when they simply acted as a conduit for user uploads. So if you upload something that is copyrighted, like if you take an image off Google and stick it on Facebook, it’s not their fault. Now, they will be liable. Hence automated systems will delete anything that is copyrighted.
As we see all the time, algorithms by the richest companies in the world are terrible at doing their jobs. This week, we saw YouTube blocking educational videos from MIT and the Blender Foundation because they were erroneously flagged by its piracy filters. In the past, we’ve seen bullshit piracy claims over white noise and birds chirping.
Why are they doing this? Aside from the potential of individual countries in the EU to decide what is and isn’t news, copyright claims could be used to suppress material for political purposes. If they don’t like a story, it’s no issue to submit a bogus copyright claim.
Users will find that their contributions—including video, audio, text, and even source code—will be monitored and potentially blocked if the automated system detects what it believes to be a copyright infringement. This is going to kill web development! Engineers usually take others’ code and improve on it. That’s how we advance as a society! Innovation!
There is no way for an automated system to reliably determine when the use of a copyright work falls within a copyright limitation or exception under European law, such as quotation or parody.
For example, the “take my money” meme uses an image of Fry from Futurama. He is the copyright of artist Matt Groening. This is legal because it is parody, but no filter will realise. Any “take my money” memes will be deleted. This is mental!
No “fair use” clause means you’ll have to go shoot your own photo to caption and make it clear that anyone is allowed to further caption it in the pursuit of creating a meme.
Internet big guys are objecting. Jimmy Wales (Wikipedia), Mitchell Baker (Mozilla), Brewster Kahle (Internet Archive) and Tim Berners-Lee (the whole freakin’ WW flippin’ W):
“By requiring Internet platforms to perform automatic filtering all of the content that their users upload, Article 13 takes an unprecedented step towards the transformation of the Internet, from an open platform for sharing and innovation, into a tool for the automated surveillance and control of its users.”
The EU is trying to force many more companies to deputise a bunch of sleuths, human and algorithmic, expand this shadow surveillance state that monitors everything we post on these platforms.
It’s thought that many sites will move outside the EU to comply. RedPill Factory is considering relocating our servers to some cave deep in the Siberian mountains!
Article 11 has been variously called the link tax or the snippet tax. Basically, you will have to pay to link to another website. Yes, to share a news article from another website. That thing you do every day on Facebook!
This is being done to stop major alternative forces such as Politicalite, The Red Pill Factory/MBGA News, Kipper Central and UKIP Daily from sharing true news, because we are all meant to be quiet and swallow whatever sh*t the BBC pumps out!
Good article, thanks. Its the sort of thing UK MPs + Lords want UK in or out of EU.
Plus the government is committing resources to countering alternative viewpoints.
I guess sites like GAB will help.
However the majority won’t go there or make extra effort and its the majority
they need.
George Orwell must be laughing in his grave.
1984 is about the arrival of Big Brother Brussels.
No wonder we must leave asoon as possible
The Internet is to the EU as a rat-poison is to a rat.
Naturally, rats would choose to ban its use.
The saddest aspect of this is that our government will just implement it as it is told to. Now that we have given notice to quit they should be refusing to follow any EU directives if they want us to believe that they are serious about leaving
The “Establishment” (or the “Elite” however you wish to refer to them) already owns and controls our governments, and owns and controls our ‘mainstream media’. By being able to control what governments say and do, courtesy of the propaganda machines of the mainstream media, it was only a matter of time before they sought to control and own the ‘internet’, a vast platform where numerous ‘alternative media’ sites amongst others were able to freely challenge the “official narrative” that the Establishment wants us all to believe. The likes of Google, Facebook, Youtube etc like to give us all the impression… Read more »
The problem as I see it. To many users have no idea how any of this works, they have been subjected to propaganda on many subjects including the ‘news’ for many many years, So long as they can tune into BBC Radio and TV, together with their daily dose of Sky and their chosen newspaper, they will not be at all bothered or interested. Our local regional ‘newspaper’ now boasts a ‘local democracy reporter’ Any comment on this from their readership, none! Censorship, nothing doing that does not happen here.
Once again it is made quite clear that the only decent future we have is in getting rid of the treacherous politicians that keep agreeing to this kind of nonsense. We have to wage war on the established parties that seem hell bent on giving away our sovereignty. The EU is shrinking in economic and credible clout. Also the EU is losing Free Speech and cultures for member states. Once outside this megalomaniac organisation we can enjoy the freedoms we should be after two world wars. Of course this should be challenged every inch of the way. But I suspect… Read more »
One would hope that our UKIP MEPs are all ready to vote against this, and that we shouldn’t need to have to write to them!
I see that the UKIP Facebook page has shared a post from Dr Julia Reid MEP, but I wonder what are the thoughts of our other MEPs?
If the Mozilla link doesn’t work for you, try this one: https://changecopyright.org/en-US/call-now
For a very readable account of the proposals see https://juliareda.eu/eu-copyright-reform/ . She names the guilty MEPs who voted for the measure (some of whom are British – you might want to send them a polite and reasoned email).
Mozilla have a handy link that you can follow to call an MEP and make your reasoned appeal – they even tell you what to say if you just want to follow a script:
https://click.e.mozilla.org/?qs=b01e475120735546035f9f25f6d3ec7cf19c81953df9a4d5b081523a2309c7c7e5487dd92ac4bd1db42cf7ba56e2f091386d9baa7d77c4f9
The measure is expected to be voted by the EU parliament around 4th July.
This needs to be shouted loud and clear. Well done for getting this campaign started. Make it loud and clear! ‘No more EU Big Brother Soros State thank you!
Being neither an expert on IT or Intellectual property law I am not sure I understand all the details of this proposal from the EU. However I hope I grasp the broad drift of the argument which is that free speech will be frustrated. This has to be a very bad thing indeed, in fact it is totalitarian, like all the rest of the control over us that the EU desires. So I look forward to it being vigorously opposed. I joined Ukip six years ago to help campaign for brexit, and although that job is not yet completely accomplished,… Read more »
In part, funny pictures such as Einstein with his toungue out and a witty(?) user supplied caption will become illegal.
Likewise my attempt at a new uniform for Lexdrum staff, showcased here: http://www.ukip-online.info/online_ev_ro_pov.html
I’ve used one of these mass-email-your-MEP sites – there’s a link buried on UKIPDaily somewhere – already: To: PARKER Margot Subject: Filtering the Internet is NOT the Solution: Say NO to Article 13 Dear MEP The July plenary vote on the Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market could cause irreparable damage to the Internet as a whole, the fundamental rights and freedoms that our countries were built on, the entire EU economy, whilst creating legal uncertainty for decades to come. It is therefore crucial that you vote against the negotiation mandate (Rule 69c) given to Rapporteur MEP Axel… Read more »