macnn/electronista

04/10/2008, 1:45pm, EDT

Thursday, April 10th

Europe votes against banning filesharers

The European Parliament has voted to abolish a plan to permanently ban illegal filesharers, writes IDG News. Under the rules of the plan, those caught sharing copyrighted music, video and other material would have been prevented from even connecting to the Internet for unspecified amounts of time, possibly permanently. "The vote shows that MEPs (Members of the European Parliament) want to strike a balance between the interests of rights holders and those of consumers, and that big measures like cutting off Internet access shouldn't be used," according to EP spokeswoman Malene Folke Chaucheprat.

The Parliament was deeply divided on the resolution however, with only 313 MEPs voting against the prospect of bans, and another 297 supporting them. Many Europeans are said to view Internet bans as too extreme; conversely, the supporting faction has taken the side of organizations such as the IFPI (International Federation of the Phonographic Industry), which is pressing for ISP-level control in regions such as the United Kingdom.


Filed under: industry, audio
Other story tags: video, Europe, MP3, IFPI

, , 7comments, del.icio.us, slashdot, digg, buzz, 
7 comments
Reader Reactions (Please use <i></i> for italic text)

subscribe to comments
for this article




Expand All   Global Settings
climacs
a ban?
0
04/10, 2:33pm, EDT
geez. Good thing the EU Parliament rejected it. An outright ban? I betcha the RIAA is paying attention to this.
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined Sep 2001
User is offline
Feathers
scary...
0
04/10, 2:58pm, EDT
What is scary is that the plan wasn't defeated by a more significant majority. Damn if there aren't those who will try to exert control under just about any pretext. It's not only the Chinese who want to restrict, constrain and control the internet. Plus, protecting the commercial interests of scumbag corporations should be the last reason on earth to curtail our freedoms... or is that what they call "economic terrorism"?
Forum Regular
Joined Oct 1999
User is offline
dynsight
good reason
0
04/10, 4:20pm, EDT
okay boys and girls,

please provide me a good reason why you should be allowed to use file sharing for copyrighted material?

Anyone?

One I can think of is that you travel and need access to movies and music. However there are many safer (non-sharing ways of doing this).

So again, why should you be sharing copyrighted material?

Is that crickets I hear chirping?
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined May 2005
User is offline
climacs
dynsight is right
0
04/10, 4:30pm, EDT
it's illegal, therefore there is no punishment which is too draconian, even death.
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined Sep 2001
User is offline
flask
re: good reason
0
04/10, 10:36pm, EDT
Umm, am I reading this wrong, or was this bill proposing to somehow prevent convicted file-sharers from EVER using the internet again? And you don't think that's an excessive response to minor cases of copyright infringement? Because surely the file-sharers couldn't possibly use the internet for anything BUT illegal activity, just as convicted shoplifters can't walk into a store without ganking something.
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined May 2004
User is offline
010111
crickets?
0
04/11, 5:23am, EDT
more like the sound of a thousand eyes rolling.
Junior Member
Joined Aug 2002
User is offline
Roger@MacNN
re: good reason
0
04/11, 12:53pm, EDT
It may be illegal, dyn, but banning someone from the Internet is tantamount to blocking phone access or letter-writing.
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined Jan 2008
User is offline
Your Comments

In order to post comments: If you are a registered member, please login with your MacNN Forums username and password otherwise please uncheck the checkbox below.


Registered Member?
macnn forums login:

macnn forums password:

Not a member of the MacNN forums? Register now for free.

AT&T Cell Phones: Get your next AT&T phone at 1800mobiles.com

Check Out the VIERA from Panasonic!: Enter a New Visual Era with Panasonic VIERA HDTVs. An Enhanced Experience.

Need Mac Help?: Nationwide Onsite Service & Support Troubleshooting, Upgrades, Training troubleshooting, Training, Networking, Upgrades, Graphics, Database, Digital Video.

Mac: Browse a huge selection now. Find exactly what you want today.

Cute Mac & Me Patterns: Lots of cool Mac & Me patterns $4 US s Buy from The Apple Store, iTunes.com, Amazon.com, TechDepot, OfficeDepot, Computers4Sure, or donate.