PacNet subscribers who thought that they were in the clear from Odex’s means to get their names may have to think twice soon. Odex has filed an earlier appeal for the case to be reheard and both Odex and PacNet were called back to the chambers to discuss on some issues and to have their submissions made by the end of next week.

I am not sure how everything will turn out to be, but it still bothers me that Odex is asking the parents of children who downloaded anime to pay thousands of dollars in settlement. While I agree that downloading illegal stuffs (and not all anime are illegal to download, from what I understand) is not right, the extent to which Odex is asking for money is a little scary. Of course it also troubles me that Singnet delivers the name list to their door step (and I heard that the latter allegation may be wrong).

Odex and Pacific Internet’s (PacNet) lawyers were called back to the High Court on Thursday morning for a brief in-chambers discussion with Justice Woo Bih Li.

The Straits Times understands that Justice Woo raised a number of additional points of law, and asked both parties to give written submissions on their positions on these issues, by the end of next week.

There is no date set for any further hearings, or when a verdict can be expected in the appeal.

Odex, which distributes Japanese animated cartoons or anime here, is appealing a lower court decision denying it access to the names of PacNet subscribers it alleged were downloading pirated anime.

Odex had sent letters demanding thousands of dollars in settlement from SingNet broadband users it alleged were downloading pirated anime.

It sought a court order to get these names, and subsequently managed to obtain a court order to have access to the identities of alleged downloaders from StarHub.

But it failed to obtain a court order to get the names of PacNet downloaders, and it is appealing this now.

Article obtained from straitstimes.com on 3rd January 2008

The Malaysia Health Minister has quit amidst a sex scandal in which he was the lead. This, however, is unlike any recent scandals where the video recording were intentionally taped. For Health Minister Chua Soi Lek, he was probably just a victim of others who were out to smear his good name. While it was morally wrong of him to have committed this act, he was courageous enough to admit to it instead of pushing the blame around.

Perhaps the video is too clear for him to deny anything, but at least he was up-front about it. It was still unclear if there is any political motive to it, although the act of recording him is deemed to be an invasion of privacy and is illegal.

KUALA LUMPUR - MALAYSIA’S Health Minister Chua Soi Lek resigned yesterday, after admitting to a shocked nation that he was the man in a widely circulated sex video.

Datuk Seri Dr Chua also quit as the Member of Parliament for Labis in Johor, and stepped down from all posts in his party, the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA).

Until yesterday, Dr Chua was one of the MCA’s four vice-presidents.

It was the first time in recent memory that a Malaysian minister had quit and accepted blame of any kind for his actions.

‘After I made my confession, I had hoped Malaysians would be able to accept my apology,’ a calm Dr Chua, 60, told a packed news conference at his ministry’s office in Putrajaya.

‘Unfortunately, from the feedback I received, I observed that Malaysians cannot accept it,’ he said.

‘Some Malaysians have a holier-than-thou attitude.’

Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi told a news conference that Dr Chua resigned because of the possible negative effects on the government and the party.

‘He has taken responsibility for what happened. I feel it was an appropriate decision considering the circumstances,’ he said.

Datuk Seri Abdullah, who said he had not viewed the video, also said it was ‘unlikely’ to undermine the government’s preparations for elections, widely expected by the middle of this year.

When asked, he said no legal action would be taken against Dr Chua. He also would not address talk that the scandal was a political plot.

‘I can’t speculate,’ he said. ‘It was an invasion of privacy and that is a criminal offence. Police will conduct an investigation.’

After an emergency two-hour meeting yesterday, the MCA’s top body said it ‘regretfully accepts and respects’ Dr Chua’s decision.

‘It must have been a difficult decision for him, and we commend him for putting his party and the country before self,’ said the party president, Datuk Seri Ong Ka Ting.

The MCA also said it would leave it to the Prime Minister to decide on a replacement for the vacant Cabinet post.

The party condemned those who filmed and distributed the DVDs.

Dr Chua had hinted that he was a victim of a political conspiracy within the party.

On Tuesday, he admitted that he was the man seen having sex with an unidentified woman in the DVD. He described the woman as a ‘personal friend’.

News of the two-part DVD was first reported in the Chinese dailies on Sunday, followed by the Malay-language Utusan Malaysia.

The first DVD, about an hour long, shows footage from four different camera angles in a hotel suite - the bed, living area, bathroom entrance and main door.

The second DVD, lasting 44 minutes, shows the couple having sex.

Utusan Malaysia said the woman, believed to be in her 20s, is a florist.

The DVDs were left in various locations in Muar and Batu Pahat for the public to pick up. Copies also made their way to other parts of the country.

Dr Chua, a father of three, said he did not make the DVDs. His wife, Datin Seri Wong Sek Hin, issued a statement accepting his apology.

hazlinh@sph.com.sg

kumhor@sph.com.sg

Article obtained from straitstimes.com on 3rd January 2007; photo from Guang Ming Daily

Oil price has risen to a new high of US$100 and this had sparks concerns all over the world. Here in Singapore, most of us are too familiar with what this can bring about. As witnessed in the past months, some of the phenomenon that can occur includes:

• taxi fare hike - because the cost of diesel and/or petrol and/or natural gas has risen and taxi drivers are finding it hard to make a living
• transport fare hike - costs of public transport will rise citing increased fuel costs
• electric tariffs - electric bills will rise citing increase in cost of oil
• airport surcharges - airport tax and air fare will rise citing increased fuel costs
• dining - it’d be more expensive to eat out because of increase in LPG
• ministers’ pay - their pay will go up citing increased cost of living

Of course, all these are just speculation and may not really happen. However, there’s something I am sure will remain constant - the people’s pay. However, if you are game for some go-down action, then I know of something that just might go down. Bonuses.

Have a jolly good 2008!

NEW YORK - OIL prices vaulted to a record US$100 a barrel on Wednesday as violence in Nigeria, tight energy stockpiles and a weaker dollar triggered a surge of speculative buying, dealers said.

Oil’s climb to the psychologically key triple-digit price helped send stocks tumbling on Wall Street and further darkened an already gloomy economic outlook in the United States, which has been battered by a housing crisis and credit crunch.

‘Oil hitting US$100 a barrel has sparked some concerns about the consumer and inflation,’ said Todd Salamone, vice president of research at Schaeffer’s Investment Research.

US crude traded once at US$100 a barrel, up US$4.02, before easing back to settle US$3.64 higher at US$99.62. It remains below the inflation-adjusted high of US$101.70 hit in April 1980, a year after the Iranian revolution.

London Brent crude rose US$3.99 to US$97.84.

‘Oil could rise further from here. It’s simple supply-and-demand fundamentals,’ said Kris Voorspools, energy analyst at Fortis in Brussels.

The White House said it would not open up the nation’s emergency crude oil reserve to lower prices.

Two members of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries said the cartel was powerless to bring the market down from its lofty height. Crude prices jumped 58 per cent in 2007, the biggest annual gain this decade. Oil prices have nearly tripled since 2000 - driven by rising demand in China and other developing countries, tight stockpiles and geopolitical turmoil.

Weakness in the US dollar has added to gains across the commodity sector as investors supported the underlying value of products denominated in the softening currency.

Wednesday’s price surge of more than 4 per cent came after suspected militant attacks in Nigeria’s main oil city, Port Harcourt, heightened concern over the potential for further disruptions in shipments from the world’s eighth largest oil exporter.

‘With the military and the militant warlords engaged in a violent tit-for-tat, the risk for oil disruptions in Nigeria remains higher than in the past few months,’ said Olivier Jakob of Petromatrix.

Frequent attacks by militant groups since February 2006 have driven thousands of foreign oil workers from the oil-rich Niger Delta and cut oil exports by about 20 per cent.

Investors are also particularly sensitive to signs of further fund investment in commodities at the start of the year. The broad Reuters/Jefferies CRB Index of commodities rose nearly 17 per cent in 2007 as the sector rebounded from a loss in 2006.

A further decline in US crude stockpiles - already running at a three-year low - was also expected. Weekly government data will be released on Thursday, a day later than usual due to the New Year holiday.

Stocks of crude in the United States were expected to have fallen 2.2 million barrels last week, the seventh straight week of decline, as refiners processed more crude, according to a Reuters poll. — REUTERS

Article obtained from straitstimes.com on 2rd January 2008