Home -> Law Blog Directory -> Legal News Blogs -> JURIST - The Paper Chase

Legal News

: JURIST - The Paper Chase

France assembly considers bill to shut off internet access for illegal file sharers

By Bernard Hibbitts (editor) and University of Pittsburgh School of Law students.

[JURIST] The French National Assembly on Tuesday began considering a bill that would allow the government to shut off internet access for those who repeatedly share or download copyrighted music and movies illegally. The bill, supported by French Minister of Culture Christine Albanel and passed by the country's Senate in October 2008, has been criticized by consumer and rights groups who say it infringes on civil liberties and could lead to wholesale internet surveillance. Consumer group UFC-Que Choisir urged Assembly members to reject the bill, arguing that most illegal downloading could be stopped by the creation of subscription-based services that give consumers better legal access to copyrighted materials. Other countries have also been struggling with how to balance protecting copyrighted material on the internet with privacy concerns. In December, the Recording Industry Association of America  dropped  a number of lawsuits against illegal file-sharers after some of the defendants counter-sued the association  for tactics it used to track their internet use. In January 2008, the European Court of Justice  held that telecommunication companies operating in Spain were not obligated to disclose the identities of internet users suspected of illegal file sharing. In July 2007, a Belgium court ordered a file sharing website to filter or block access to users sharing copyrighted material.

Full post as published by JURIST - The Paper Chase on March 11, 2009 (boomark / email).