December 31, 2009
Digital Economy Bill’s Disconnection Tactic Could Result in EU Law Violation
Broadband disconnection of persistent offenders as recommended by the
The recommendation of the digital economy bill to allow service providers to disconnect anyone found guilty of repeated copyright infringement has been the subject of much controversy. Now, it seems such a move can even violate EU law, as mentioned by internet law expert professor Lilian Edwards.
It is already an accepted fact that as multiple users access the web from one public IP address in case of mobile broadband, it is difficult to identify individual offenders from a group of users. However, Professor Edwards has further said that the proposed bill can end up penalizing innocent network owners running free mobile networks. This is because any offender can use a free network to download copyright material without the network owner knowing about the same.
Thus, according to the terms of the bill, the network owner will face disconnection, just because someone has used his network/service to violate an owner’s copyright. In such a case, big hotels and cafes that provide free WiFi to their customers/clients will face the penalty for illegal acts of individual users. Even a broadband connection at home can be insecure if your neighbour has the habit of dropping in and using your PC to download copyright material.
However, the EU’s ‘E-Commerce Regulations’ categorically states that network owners/operators are in no way responsible for copyright infringement if the infringement is done on their networks without their knowledge.
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