In the near future, carrying your iPhone, laptop or any data storage device across national borders could be risky business. The governments of Canada, EU and the United States are currently involved in secret negotiations to promote draconian international copyright laws. This is critical to anyone who values their backed-up digital property including video games, music or movies.
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It will never happen.
Do you know how many pissed off buisness travelers you'd have to deal with that travel daily, weekly, and montly internationally? Now they would have to wait 30-40 minutes ( invision this as like a virus scan ) while some border police scans your entire laptop, ipod, etc?
You'd have a riot on your hands.
I think this is also a violation of freedom of movement as well. It's not as if they can prove the items are illegal. Are they then going to have to halt all mail because I'm shipping my laptop or some CDs?
It would also be a violation of privacy. What if I had some personal images I did not want scanned or private information I did not want accessed? Hell to avoid this, I could easily keep everything on a hard drive and declare it dead and non functional.
It's stupid, and they're wasting time and money. I think I shall write a letter.
....... The RIAA has absolutely no jurisdiction outside of the U.S.A. And most E.U countries have no copyright prosecution boards. Basically EU government would be paying a fortune so that American Corporations and Record Labels could have their money, which the EU would never do. Also If they think I'm letting some fat security bum on 35k a year touch my laptop as well as inspect my anus they've got another thing coming.
That's what makes this story so shocking. It's a violation of laws in most European countries, it would be a blatant violation of both the Canadian and US constitution.
The subtext here is that we're entering into an age where organizations supercede the nation-state. It's what's been happening with the WTO, NAFTA the EU... etc. It's not always a bad thing but when it is it has the power to be really... REALLY bad!