BUSINESS WIRE: SunnComm says report a felony

"SunnComm Technologies Inc. (OTC: STEH), [...] intends to take legal action against the writer of a critical report titled: 'Analysis of the MediaMax CD3 Copy-Prevention System.' According to Peter Jacobs, SunnComm's CEO, 'The conclusions contained in the Princeton University grad student's report issued last Monday were derived from incorrect assumptions by its author. The author did not ask for, or receive, SunnComm's MediaMax 'white paper' documentation available on the technology prior to concluding that 'MediaMax and similar copy-prevention systems are irreparably flawed ...''

SunnComm believes that by making erroneous assumptions in putting together his critical review of the MediaMax CD-3 technology, Halderman came to false conclusions concerning the robustness and efficacy of SunnComm's MediaMax technology. Based on several of these incorrect assumptions, Halderman and Princeton University have significantly damaged SunnComm's reputation and caused the market value of SunnComm to drop by more than $10 million.

In addition, SunnComm believes that Halderman has violated the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) by disclosing unpublished MediaMax management files placed on a user's computer after user approval is granted. Once the file is found and deleted according to the instructions given in the Princeton grad student's report, the MediaMax copy management system can be bypassed resulting in the copyright protected music being converted or misappropriated for potentially unauthorized and/or illegal use. SunnComm intends to refer this possible felony to authorities."

Bubba Jacobs of SunnComm is a true BubbaCrat. Here is his argument:

-- Haldermann (the author of the report criticizing the copy protection method) can not criticize the technology because he did not have inside information about the product. (Hmm, now that's an idea: You can't criticize us because you are not us! Sounds like an O'Reilly argument!)

-- Haldermann's exposé cost us money.

-- By showing people how incredibly easy our system is to break and just how stupid we are, Halderemann has broken the (controversial) DMCA law.

Nowhere does the SunnComm announcement indicate which of Haldermann's "assumptions" where "erroneous".

The crux of the matter is: it's a copyprotection technology that installs itself on your PC when you put the CD in the PC's drive and the drive launches autorun. But, under Windows, if you hold the SHIFT key down while installing a CD in a PC, the autorun doesn't run. Haldermann showed how the morons at SunnComm thought that they could bluff the entire industry into buying their stupidity, that's the upshot. Lucky thing for Bubba Jacobs that being a complete idiot isn't a crime!