Happy Independence Day. Take a moment to be glad you aren’t Alex Hanff, a British software developer who the Register is reporting was sacked for having opinion by his new employer, Aldcliffe Computer Systems.
The gist is that he was asked to appear on an evening news talk show after the announcement of the U. S. Supreme Court’s decision on the MGM v. Grokster case was released because he had been sued by the MPAA. He agreed to appear and said things that were, evidently, contrary to the opinions of his employer.
My favorite quote is from the parent corporation’s press release: “Mr. Hanff has declared that he is opposed to copyright and intellectual property laws. Since much of our business is based around the protection of our copyright and intellectual property, we consider our dismissal of Mr. Hanff entirely justified and appropriate.”
Interestingly, Hanff was sued prior to his employment at Aldcliffe, and it was fairly big news, so for the company to be surprised at his attitude towards copyright seems a little disingenuous. (Google “Alex Hanff” to see the litany of news this guy has generated.)