Culture Secretary Ben Bradshaw yesterday spoke some more about the government's plans to put a three-strikes style system to combat illegal file-sharing onto the British statute book, and revealed some specifics which some see as new proposals to placate those who have criticised the so called 'graduated-response' piracy deterrent.
As much previously reported, the record industry and others in the music business are advocating a new anti-piracy system that would be administered by the internet service providers, who would send those who illegally file-share music warning letters alerting them that they are infringing copyrights and then, if said warnings were not heeded, cut the bandwidth of those customers, or ultimately suspend their net connection for a time.
Variations of this system are currently being introduced in France and New Zealand, though the British government were not keen on the idea to start with, with their 'Digital Britain' report earlier this year only suggesting such an approach as a last resort somewhere down the line. But then in August Peter Mandelson stepped in and a consultation began on how exactly such a system could be introduced over here much sooner.
The proposals have been controversial in all the territories where they have been seriously considered. In the UK not even the whole music industry would give the proposals their support, with some joining consumer rights groups and internet service providers in expressing concerns about the three-strikes approach, and cynicism regarding the impact such a thing would actually have on the levels of file-sharing.
The biggest issue in France and New Zealand has been whether or not a court of law would be involved at some point in the three-strike process - ie before any suspension or disconnection of net access occurs.
In France the government's three-strikes proposals, although passed by parliament, stumbled at the last hurdle when the country's Constitutional Council ruled that allowing a government department, rather than a judge, to deprive someone of net access was unconstitutional. French ministers have since added an extra stage to the three-strike process (possibly making it 'four-strikes' - the proposed UK system is about six strikes), in which a judge would rubber stamp net disconnection orders. The judicial stage would also have some sort of appeals process.
Similar concerns - the lack of a judge and appeals process - have been raised by some of those who oppose three-strikes in the UK. To that end Bradshaw told the House Of Commons Culture Committee this week that copyright owners would have to obtain a court order as part of the three-strikes system being proposed here. As part of that process, the Culture Sec assured the parliamentary committee, those who felt they had been falsely accused of file-sharing would have a formal right to appeal.
Some have suggested the court order stage has been added late in the day to placate those who expressed opposition to the three-strikes proposal, though it's possible some sort of judicial involvement had always been anticipated, though there has been talk of OfCom being somehow involved also.
Responding to Select Committee concerns that the suspension of file-sharers' net connection was too draconian, Bradshaw said, according to the Guardian: "The suspensions to which you refer would be a very last resort for serious ... infringement. It wouldn't just happen ... on the basis of an accusation".