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The World Was a Better Place to Live — At Least for a Few Hours
We have great news to report as you are going into the weekend: The most popular (to the blogosphere’s nitwits) and most reviled (to those with a modicum of taste and decency) celebrity blog on the Internet, PerezHilton.com, was temporarily taken off line this week, after X-17 (one of the many paparazzi agencies suing him for copyright infringement) convinced his hosting provider to yank him.
The site was down for several hours on Tuesday, before returning in skeleton form on Wednesday (the archives are absent and comments are not enabled). In the last two weeks, X-17’s lawyers have sent several letters to the Australian hosting provider, Crucial Paradigm, demanding that they discontinue hosting the blog. Crucial told the company that represents Perez that if they received one more notice of copyright infringement, they would be forced to shut ‘er down. Apparently, they got that one more notice. So, to protect their own asses in the case of a lawsuit (Perez is being sued for $7.6 million), they pulled the plug.
On his website, Perez explained to his legions of tiny, tiny brained readers that he was experiencing “temporary technical difficulties and other roadblocks.”
Meanwhile, the more disconcerting piece of the saga, to me at least, is that Blogads.com has decided to host Perez’s site until he can find a suitable replacement. I like Blogads — they are responsible for the ads on the sidebar of this site, and more prominently, on our sister site, Pajiba. But I am concerned, not just because Blogads is enabling blatant copyright infringement, but because the ad service is putting themselves in legal danger. I understand why, I think — Perez brings in over $30,000/week in ad revenue, 30 percent of which goes to Blogads. But now that Blogads has a virtual monopoly on blogger sidebar ads and the income to prove it, I don’t see why they feel compelled to needlessly endanger themselves or further associate their respectable ad service with the likes of Perez for a mere $9,000 a week, which has gotta be a drop in the bucket for those guys by now. So, what’s the deal, Blogads? Was this move made completely for monetary reasons, or are you under the misguided impression (as is Perez) that you are defending the First Amendment and Fair Use laws? Because, you’re really not. A couple of photoshopped coke boogers and scribbled monosyllables does not convert a copyrighted work into a fair use.
(Hat Tip: Evil Beet, for bringing this bit of news to my attention.)
Comments
Wow - he hosts in Australia? Why? It's hideously expensive (you pay through the nose for bandwidth) and the defamation laws there make Zimbabwe seem enlightened.
Anyway, if nothing else we can be certain that no first amendment laws apply there. Be thankful for small mercies.
Posted by dot | June 22, 2007 6:32 PM
The only thing perez ever did for me was lead me to you and pajiba...
I've long since stopped frequenting his site and am super glad that he's catching so much flack and that he has to pay through the nose - he's an IDIOT!
Posted by Adri | June 23, 2007 2:29 PM
Enlighten me --and I assure you I'm no fan of Mr. Hilton-- but exactly how is what he does different and thereby more illegal than any other celebutard gossip blog? All the other sites post the same pictures, so why is Perez being singled out? I agree that Perez is a total douche and deserves every ounce of ridicule hurled at him, I'm just asking for clarification on the legal issue, not defending his actions.
Posted by ceej | June 23, 2007 8:47 PM
forgive me for daring to be honest, but, as the above commenter noted, perez led me to pajiba which led me here. and ya'll don't seem to think that means anything: we lousy, tiny brained readers of yours.
millions of us read celebrity gossip nonsense every day because we've decided we don't like being 100% fucking serious all the time and we're grown up enough to admit to ourselves we like to indulge in pleasures that aren't wholesome and fiscally responsible and good for our bowels.
As much as it makes you seem worldly and superior to criticize things commonly accepted as popular and not productive, methinks thou dost protest too much. celebrity gossip is international currency that unites Ph.Ds with gas station attendants.
"one is not superior merely because one sees the world as odious."- Chateaubriand
Posted by timaree | June 24, 2007 1:11 AM
ceej - you're correct that there isn't that much difference, in and of itself, between what Perez does and what many other blogs do. What is different is how he reacted when originally contacted by X17 about the use of its photos. As we've discussed before, they sent him a very reasonable letter, asking him to stop using their photos and to seek permission in the future. He responded by calling the letter writer a "bitch" and a "cunt," and threatening her, when she was simply writing to enforce her company's valid copyright rights. That's why I take particular issue with Perez, at least as to this situation - because he's an insufferable prick.
timaree - look, I have absolutely nothing against the celebrity blogs in general nor, do I believe, does Dustin. There are ones, like I Don't Like You In That Way and The Superficial, which I even read on a pretty regular basis, and there are plenty of others that I stop in on now and again. I kinda hate that I read the stuff and am entertained by it, but I am. So I hold nothing against you or anyone else who loves the celebrity gossip. But the important thing in that sentence is that I'm entertained by the stories and the gossip. Again, I have something against Perez's site (and I did before this lawsuit nonsense) because I don't find his particular ego and attitude and photo scribbling funny or informative or worth my time. My friends' two-year-old twins could probably scribble on photos and come up with something funnier and clever than the crap he puts up. When it comes down to it, he's built this den of shit around the character of "Perez Hilton" that he rolls around in, and I simply don't like it, or him. And that's why our site attacks him - because, again, he's an insufferable, egomaniacal prick with no actual, apparent talent.
Posted by Seth | June 24, 2007 6:28 PM
seth- fair enough, i can agree with that.
Posted by timaree | June 25, 2007 12:01 AM
Oh snap! In that case, his legal fate is well deserved. Thanks Seth for clarifying the issue.
My main issue with Perez is his "outing" of celebs. He says that gay people should live out and proud, and I think they should... IF they want to. They way he forces people out the closet -I think Neil Patrick Harris accurately likened it to "the vultures circling"-- is just shameless and self-promoting.
Posted by ceej | June 25, 2007 11:51 AM