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Queen's speech cements file-sharing proposals

By Stuart Turton

Posted on 18 Nov 2009 at 15:25

The Government has used the Queen's speech to confirm that it will press ahead with plans to disconnect illegal file-sharers.

The measures will be passed as part of the Digital Economy Bill, which will force ISPs to penalise persistent file-sharers.

As expected, the Government plans to initially withhold the threat of disconnection, while Ofcom is tasked with measuring the effectiveness of warning letters - a study that will last a year.

If illegal file-sharing is not reduced 70% by April 2011, the Government will begin ordering that illegal file-sharers be disconnected after receiving two warning letters.

The bill was welcomed by the BPI, which called it "good news for fans of British music".

This plan won't stop copyright infringement and with a simple accusation could see you and your family disconnected from the internet

"The creative sector in the UK needs new measures implemented urgently that address this problem for now and the future if the UK is to lead Europe in giving consumers innovative and high quality digital entertainment," says Geoff Taylor, chief executive of the BPI.

The mood wasn't quite so celebratory over at the Open Rights Group. The privacy body is urging people to contact their MPs and protest against the bill.

"This plan won't stop copyright infringement and with a simple accusation could see you and your family disconnected from the internet - unable to engage in everyday activities like shopping and socialising," says a statement on its website.

"We have a few days to show this (and any future) Government that it can't mess with the internet - just ask the 600,000 people who recently had access to their Xbox Live accounts blocked. Any of us could easily be next," the body concludes.

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User comments

All manner of concerns

Those people who are intent to illegally share files to a significant degree are by and large technically adept. They know how to encrypt their communications, maybe make use of hosted systems abroad. They are all but untraceable.

So the big fish, doing the real damage, go unaffected by the new legislation.

But those who are niaive enough to leave wireless routers unprotected get targetted. Those who are victims of mistaken identity get targetted. Those who really are sharing files, but at massively reduced volumes due to limitted residential upload bandwidth, get targetted.

We can't catch the big fish, so we'll prey on the weak-and-innocent, or the small time and inconsequential.

And worst of all? We the tax payers will pay for the administration of such a farce.

Never a day goes by where human stupidity fails to depress me.

By matbailie on 18 Nov 2009

On the upside...

Only a brain-damaged zombie would vote this lot back in, so there's very little chance of this becoming law.

Please remember to vote responsibly... ANYTHING BUT LABOUR!!

By cheysuli on 18 Nov 2009

Well the Tories have plans for something similar, so I wouldn't want them in power either.

By malfranks2 on 18 Nov 2009

Vote for...

The Raving Loney Party....just like we did last time ;)

By anthonysjones on 18 Nov 2009

Tories/NuLabour?

Different sides of the same worthless penny.

By Lacrobat on 19 Nov 2009

How to target the criminal with shotgun in a crowded marketplace?

Well, you don't need to be too tech savvy to know how to re-route your traffic through an encrypting server for a very modest amount per month. The result?

Little miss sunshine, 7 years old will disconnect the family's internet connection by "sharing" one of her favorite smurfs episode (oooooh what a catastrophic loss for the majors there!)

My mum will inadvertently "search" for Edith piaf on google and click on the torrent link without knowing that it is illegally downloading: disconnected

Ben, my tech allergic cousin WILL do stupid things without knowing exacly what

All of these disconnected. Maybe prosecuted, 250.000$ fine anyone?

Me? No thanks, I know better than that.

By Olivier on 19 Nov 2009

How to target the criminal with shotgun in a crowded marketplace?

By Olivier on 19 Nov 2009

Its just scare tatics, to get home users to try and actually think what they are doing.

As someone already stated, the tech savvy people will just 'go underground', encrypt, or switch to a different method (torrent to usenet).

Just like the new broadband tax, i hear another tax on the horizon - 'policing the internet tax'

By andy_fogg on 19 Nov 2009

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