Antigua Plans to Launch Pirate Site over US Dispute
The ongoing battle between the US and the tiny Island of Antigua seems to be nearing boiling point with Antigua saying they are ready to launch their very own 'legal' pirate website. You have probably heard all the details of the case in that Antigua won a decision at the WTO regarding the attitude of the US government on online gambling leading to a huge loss in revenue and a steep incline in unemployment in Antigua. As part of the settlement, should the US not pay Antigua, then the WTO ruled that they could obtain the funds via other means including selling music and film whilst being able to ignore global agreements on copyrights and trademarks. Until now Antigua has not used this ace up its sleeve, however with the fact that the States have continued to ignore the WTO ruling then Antigua has decided to act.
Official Pirates
The Caribbean Island will appear before the WTO on January 28th asking for permission to run the site, and the US has of course objected to the plan and called it official piracy. Originally Antigua asked to sell up to $3.4 Billion worth of music, film and software before even thinking about copyrights, however the WTO ruled that they may only sell $21 Million annually which is a lot more than the offer of $500,000 offered annually by the US. Antigua, by having permission to run the site will be firmly in the driving seat regarding this dispute, forcing the US to either accept the site for what it is, or pay Antigua the sum that the WTO sees fit. However the US states that if they should go ahead with the site then, "it would only serve to postpone the final resolution of this matter, to the detriment of Antigua's own interests."
