Well, the flyposting-is-evil saga took a dramatic turn on Friday afternoon when a London court issued temporary Anti-Social Behaviour Orders against three employees of ambient marketing company Diabolical Liberties on the grounds that their role in coordinating flyposting campaigns in the capital constitutes anti-social behaviour. The move means that if the company's Tim Horrox, Dominic Murphy and James Heighway are now seen to be involved in any way in flyposting campaigns in the London borough of Camden they could face fines and even a prison sentence. All three, and a fourth employee, Anna Macree, are now due to return to court on 15 Mar for a full hearing. Camden Council hope to have the Anti-Social Behaviour Orders extended at that hearing to cover the whole of England and Wales.
Camden Council hope this landmark ruling will force an end to widespread flyposting in London, and perhaps the UK. They reckon the people who run the companies who have taken advantage of formerly slack anti-flyposting legislation will be running scared at the possibility of being landed with an ASBO to their name. If so that will pose a challenge for companies like Diabolical Liberties. While flyposting is only one of the marketing techniques employed by the agency, it is an important part of their business.
Speaking after the court hearing, Cllr John Thane, Camden Council's Executive Member for Environment, told reporters: "We are delighted with the verdict as we got the interim Orders we wanted in three out of four cases. This company, Diabolical Liberties, makes a substantial profit from illegal activity and we are seeking to curb this activity. They are seeking to hold on to their profits. Their business is not about culture, it's about commerce. It is not small theatres and struggling artists that benefit from illegal flyposting, it's about big artists and big business, which explains one of the first companies we targeted was a national conglomerate like Sony."
Needless to say Diabolical Liberties intend to fight the ruling, if possible appealing to a higher court before the full hearing next March. A spokesman for the company told CMU this morning: "At Highbury Corner Magistrates Court on Friday, interim ASBO orders have been granted against three named individual employees of Diabolical Liberties. One interim application against Anna Macree was found to be unjust and therefore refused. The order was strictly limited and applies only to activity within the Borough of Camden. The court refused the application by Camden for the restrictions to be applicable for all of England and Wales. This interim order, which has been made without consideration of the evidence, or arguments in this case, will now be appealed to a higher court in advance of a full trail at Highbury Corner. This trial is scheduled to take place in March 2005".
"This decision by the magistrate does not represent a full legal hearing of the evidence, nor has it addressed the significant, complex issues of civil liberty, creative freedom and the seriously detrimental impact to our culture, should Camden Council succeed in using the ASBO legislation in this way. Diabolical Liberties will of course continue to operate as a multi dimensional ambient media marketing agency, both in the UK and across Europe. Our staff, who are now subjected to an interim order, will continue to have the full support of the company throughout the appeal process and at trial."
"Diabolical Liberties would like to take this opportunity to thank the many people, including Camden residents, clients, suppliers, the media and those who work within the creative industries for their vocal support of our case. We would ask that this support continues, and that Camden Council are sent a clear message, that regulation, not criminalisation, of cultural advertising is the most beneficial way to move the ancient art of flyposting forward into the 21st century."