The House of Commons has passed a bill to curb digital
piracy, according to a report Thursday (Apr. 8) in London daily, The Telegraph.
The bill allows for the suspension of Internet connections
for repeat file-sharing offenders, and would allow for the blocking of sites
that a court concludes "has been, is being or is likely to be used for or
in connection with an activity that infringes copyright," according to The Telegraph's Emma Barnett.
Some U.S. ISPs have what has been tabbed a
"three-strike" policy, giving several warnings, then terminating
accounts for repeat illegal file sharing.
Studios in the U.S., who are all for efforts to crack down
on infringing sites and pirates on this side of the Big Pond, have been
supportive of the bill and following its the progress through Parliament. The
bill must now go back to the House of Lords, which one studio source said is
expected to be essentially a pro forma stamp of approval.
The Computer & Communications Industry Association, whose members include Google, Microsoft and Yahoo, said it was troubled by the bill. "The Computer & Communications Industry Association strongly supports traditional copyright law, but is deeply concerned about the nature of this new law that puts profits of big movie and music producers above the rights to due process of Internet users," the group said in a statement.
