Last month the French National Assembly surprisingly shot down the extremely controversial ‘three strikes’ laws which would disconnect alleged pirates from the Internet after two warnings.
This week however, the legislation, backed by President Nicolas Sarkozy, has been passed by the Assembly, putting the laws in the hands of the Senate after over a year of debate.
The bill, dubbed The Creation and Internet bill, passed 296 to 233 and will now head to the Senate on Wednesday for final approval.
The three strikes laws would work as follows: A new regulatory body would send alleged pirates a warning e-mail, then a written letter, and finally cut them off the Internet for one year for a third offense.
Critics of the bill have warned that the bill may lead to innocent people being punished, if their computers or networks are hacked.
The socialist Patrick Bloche adds that the bill is “dangerous, useless, inefficient, and very risky for us citizens”.
John Kennedy, chairman of the IFPI, applauded the move, adding that the bill is “an effective and proportionate way of tackling online copyright infringement and migrating users to the wide variety of legal music services in France”.
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The European Parliament has blocked a proposal that would clear the way for internet users to be disconnected on nothing more than accusations by copyright holders. Their amendment to a proposed telecom reform directive states “No restriction may be imposed on the fundamental rights and freedoms of end users, without a prior ruling by the judicial authorities.”
This language is clearly directed at legislation which lobbyists for the recording industry have been demanding for some time. In last year’s Digital Music Report the IFPI (an international equivalent of the RIAA) said “In 2008 [ISP Responsibility] must become a reality.”
They were referring to proposals in several countries that would force ISPs to disconnect customers who have been accused of copyright infringement via P2P network.
The legislation being considered, most notably French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s 3 strikes plan, hasn’t become a reality yet. But proponents of disconnecting internet service from accused copyright infringers are still trying hard to push the legislation through.
In France they have even gone so far as to suggest ISPs should be allowed to continue billing disconnected users, hoping to win support from that industry.
The debate among EU officials isn’t done yet either. The MEPs’ overwhelming vote to amend the proposed directive means they will attempt to reach some compromise with the Council of Ministers and European Commission.
Viviane Reding, commissioner for Information Society and Media and the EU’s highest telecom official, has come out in support of Parliament’s decision.
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According to new reports coming out of France, any ISP willing to join the RIAA in its “three strikes” your out laws against piracy will have to spend a lot of money to enforce the rules, as much as 16 million USD per year.
Although the laws have been struck down by the EP and the German government, they have been adopted in New Zealand and is moving towards adoption in France, where President Nicolas Sarkozy is a big proponent.
The ‘three strikes’ rules would give alleged pirates two email or written warnings from their ISP before they have their Internet connection completely shut off and their name blacklisted.
The French newspaper La Liberation added that if France were to adopt the rules, the bill could “trigger around 10,000 warning e-mails, 3000 letters and 1000 decisions about Internet cut-offs per day,” forcing the ISPs to hire new workers and incur new costs.
