This weeks discussion and reading are especially useful for learning presentation words such as ‘a large increase’ which are used to describe graphs etc.
Before you read: some questions to help you think about the topic and the words you might need.
How are people punished now for illegally downloading movies and music in your country?
Do you think that illegal downloading can be controlled? Why or why not?
Internet piracy rates in New Zealand have reduced by 50% since the introduction of the argued "three strikes" rule, a record industry group has said. The rule means that fines of up to USD$12,000 can be issued to illegal downloaders who are caught downloading three times. The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (Rianz) said 2,766 infringement letters had been sent out. But the group has called for the cost of sending letters to be lowered. A handful of users in the country had suffered a third strike, TVNZ reported, but none had so far had to appear in court at the Copyright Tribunal (government organization that is like a law court). However, Rianz reported a significant drop in piracy levels - its data seems to show that the incidences of top-200 movies being viewed illegally went from 110,000 in August to 50,000 in the following month, when the rule began. But it added that the number immediately "plateaued", and noted that four out of every 10 Internet users in the country still downloaded pirated material.
In an effort to fight this, Rianz wants to up the number of infringement notices to 5,000 per month, with the current fee of USD$20 to be cut to less than $2. The country's Economic Development Ministry is reviewing the fees. Telecom companies have argued that the cost should be higher. The three strikes rule has experienced intense scrutiny around the world, where it has been considered in various different ways. For example, in the UK, the Digital Economy Act was passed by the previous government, but the key part of the act - sending out warning letters - has been continually delayed. The first letters are not expected to be sent until at least 2014. Other anti-piracy measures include the blocking of popular websites used to access illegal material - such as the Pirate Bay, which was blocked in April this year. However, the effectiveness of blocking has come under dispute - last week the BBC revealed that, according to one Internet service provider, the dip in downloading traffic following the ban lasted only a matter of days.
Guessing meaning from context
Try to guess the meaning of the words in bold and match them with their closest meaning from the choices in the right. The answers are below the table.
|
infringement |
A |
1 |
A few, not many |
|
A handful of |
B |
2 |
Became level or stable, no longer increasing or decreasing |
|
significant drop |
C |
3 |
Watching a lot and very carefully |
|
incidences |
D |
4 |
A large decrease |
|
plateaued |
E |
5 |
Happenings, occurrences, events |
|
up the number |
F |
6 |
Argument, disagreement |
|
intense scrutiny |
G |
7 |
Something that is important |
|
key |
H |
8 |
A noticeable decrease but smaller not so large |
|
dispute |
I |
9 |
Someone increases the amount of something |
|
A dip in |
J |
10 |
A penalty, a punishment that usually means paying money for breaking a rule or a law |
A=10, B=1, C=4, D=5, E=2, F=9, G=3, H=7, I=6, J=8
Some discussion questions using the new words to help you better understand the word meaning and how to use them correctly. Try to use the words in your answer.
1. Do you agree with the way the New Zealand government has sent out infringements?
2. What had a handful of users been accused of? Were they guilty of infringing?
3. Who or what caused a significant drop in online illegal downloading of media such as music in New Zealand?
4. Do you think that in the future the incidences of Internet piracy will drop in other countries if different governments become strict like New Zealand?
5. What would cause Internet piracy to plateau in your country?
6. Do you feel that Rianz will be successful in getting the number of infringement notices upped in the future? Why or why not?
7. What is meant by “the three strikes rule has experienced intense scrutiny?”
8. Why was the key part of the act delayed?
9. Why would there be a dispute about this in the UK?
10. Why do you think there was only a dip in downloading and not a continual decline?
Some example sentences using the new words to help you to better understand their meaning.
1. The Seoul government is giving infringement notices to more people who park their cars illegally, but so far, only a handful of people have paid them.
2. In the last ten years there has been a significant drop in the number of people buying music CDs.
3. The incidences of people getting colds in the winter has plateaued since the new drug went on sale.
4. The London government has upped the number of police and security at the London Olympic games.
5. These days you may experience intense scrutiny if you want to get on an airplane.
6. One of the key things to learning a new language is practice.
7. Korea and Japan have a dispute about who owns the island Dokdo.
8. There has been a dip in the number of people buying ice creams because this summer is not very hot.
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