Sony's DRM woes expand to include copyright infringement

[Jeremy Charette]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.pcpro.co.uk/news/80271/sonys-drm-woes-expand-to-include-copyright-infringement.html' target='_blank'>http://www.pcpro.co.uk/news/80271/sonys-drm-woes-expand-to-include-copyright-infringement.html</a><br /><br /></div><i>"It seems that the XCP software from UK company First4Internet that Sony had been using to prevent unauthorised copying of its music CDs, until it agreed to recall some 4.7 million discs, contains code 'infringing the copyright of several open source projects', Johansen notes in his blog. This includes code that he himself wrote for VLC, a free cross-platform media player. The code was uncovered by Finnish software developer Matti Nikki, who also discovered other copyright violations. 'Multiple software components on the CD have references to the LAME open source MP3 code,' he wrote in an email. His findings have been substantiated by others. 'We can confirm that at least five functions in the XCP software are identical to functions in LAME,' Thomas Dullien from Sabre Security, a company that specialises in the analysis of complex software, told Reuters. Although open source software can be freely used, it must be credited as such. No mention of it was made in the XCP code."</i><br /><br /> <img src="http://www.digitalmediathoughts.com/images/copyright.jpg" /> <br /><br />Just when you thought the hole couldn't get any deeper... :lol:

[Felix Torres]

Oh, of course it can get deeper.
So far they're only facing class-action lawsuits in the US and Eurpoe.
There's still four continents to be heard from. :lol:

More importantly, given Sony's penchant for phone-home spyware, you have to wonder just what they add to their laptop and desktop PC software, no? :twisted:

Plenty of skeletons to dig out now that the forensics guys are involved...

[Jonathon Watkins]

Plenty of skeletons to dig out now that the forensics guys are involved...

Wonderfull. What's next....... :twisted:

[stevehiner]

Sony could be in a whole lot more trouble than this. Their rootkits were found on numerous Department of Defense computers. Now Sony, a foreign company no less, has hidden software that sends data back to them sitting on DoD hardware. That's a federal cybercrime. I doubt the DoD or Department of Homeland Security will go after them but they certainly have grounds to do so.

This is getting fun.