The
Recording Industry of America and its technical investigator SafeNet have
been caught telling too incompatible stories to different courts.
The RIAA
has been trying for two years to avoid handing over evidence in an important
anti-piracy case. It has sworn blind to a judge that SafeNet is not an expert
and does not use any technical expertise to get the 'evidence' against
suspected P2P pirates. It told the Judge that SafeNet can only do what any
other Kazaa user does and there was no evidence to be handed over.
However
in a case in Michigan, where SafeNet has been sued for engaging in the
business of investigation without a license, the company has decided that it
is really an expert. Papers turned up in the Michigan case have SafeNet
saying it has the same level of expertise as a chemical engineers, surveyors,
physicians, geologists, and other expert witnesses who rely on their
technical expertise.
According to
RecordingIndustryvspeople.com, SafeNet says that its activities are excepted by law, because it is providing
testimony in a lawsuit based on factual information gathered by application
of technical knowledge.
"SafeNet utilizes technical expertise in
gathering factual evidence for use in just the same way as those other
professionals, and thus enjoys the same exception," the company said.
That
argument will be down the drain if Michigan's Department of Labour and
Economic Growth finds out about the company's earlier claim, and if the
Lindor court finds out about what they've been saying in Michigan then
SafeNet will have some explaining to do.