A draft Senate bill that would make anyone who "intentionally
induces any violation" of US copyright law liable for that
violation, has been shelved temporarily after last-minute
negotiations between Senators, the entertainment industry and
consumer groups broke down.
The latest version of the Induce Act (otherwise known as the Inducing Infringement of Copyrights Act) would make anyone who "intentionally induces any violation" of US copyright law liable for that violation, presenting a threat to anyone who promotes a peer-to-peer network such as Kazaa.
It was due to be put before the Judiciary Committee yesterday, in the hopes of pushing the measure through the Senate before the end of the current congressional session.
But consumer groups and civil liberties organisations are up in arms over the proposals, which they see as being so broad as to attack any service or device that has the potential to be used for copyright infringement.
In an effort to reach a compromise, the bill's sponsor, Senator Orrin Hatch, had asked opponents to put forward their own version of the measure. But, according to reports, the differences between the two camps have proved too extensive to resolve at this time, and yesterday negotiations broke down.
According to the Associated Press, Senator Hatch intends to resume his efforts in the next session.
