Sorry, Cory's wrong. And given the tenor of UK libel law, the Register has good reason for concern.

I am no fan of the RIAA, but in my opinion, the Register has a reputation for FUD-packing. When it comes to certain hot-button issues, such as MicroSoft or file-sharing, it's about as credible as pravda.ru.

Don't the Register folks realize that the truth about what the RIAA actually does is bad enough to make its case?

Cory's right. If they're not waving a lawyer around, they probably know they don't have a case, and are using bullying instead. It does work sometimes, and it's very cheap.

I suspect the fuss is because they're realizing they have a potential PR disaster on their hands. If the Navy's informed of possible wrongdoing on the part of cadets, they have to investigate. And if a cadet is caught with a pirated MP3, he or she is going to have to be busted out of the program, because it's an "honor offense."

This may get seriously ugly before it's over.

While it is possible to sue for libel in the UK if your waiter gets your coffee-order wrong, it doesn't change the incredibly imperious tone and overwrought dudgeon of the RIAA letter-writer.

Not to mention that I think that she'd have a hard time proving a libel case in a court -- even a UK court. Note that she didn't say, "I demand that you take this down or you'll hear from my lawyer" or even "take this down now and I won't sue you," which is the expected form of a letter from someone who believes she has been legally wronged.

The RIAA is not "the Americans". Thanks.

That said, the RIAA has not asserted any authority, they've made a demand. Whether the demand is reasonable or not hinges on whether they're in the right regarding the correctness and intent of the story.

There's a pretty heavy attribution issue here, I think.

I don't understand your point, Cory.

The RIAA maintains that The Register's version of the story was factually incorrect, and they seem to be strongly implying that it was maliciously so.

Given that the UK has much looser libel laws than in the United States, I'm not sure what's so absurd about them demanding that a factually incorrect story be retracted.

Weeeee! Just another example where the Americans forget where their borders lie. Learn some geography, idiots.