By Chris Williams for The Register. This story was
reproduced with permission.
In a landmark speech Nicolas Sarkozy said: "The rights of
authors, the preservation of creativity, the recognition of the
rights of each artist, of each performer... was an important
commitment of my presidential campaign.
"Today an accord is signed and I see a decisive moment for the
civilised internet. Everywhere, in the US, UK and others, industry
and government have tried... to find a permanent resolution to the
problem of piracy. We are the first, in France to try to build a
national grand alliance around clear and viable proposals."
The plan has been drawn up by French retail exec Denis
Olivennes. It will see signatory ISPs - including France Telecom,
which owns Orange in the UK - hand over information on heavy users
of file-sharing networks to a new enforcement body which will
formally warn them to stop. If they persist, their connection will
be cut.
As part of the bargain, movies will be released on DVD six
months after the cinema run, and music will be offered for legal
download DRM-free.
Marc Le Fur and Alain Suguenot, members of Sarkozy's own party,
condemned the proposal, arguing it "creates a truly exceptional
jurisdiction for downloaders, contravening the principle of
equality before the law".
France's deal could set a precedent, however. Rights holders
have been pressuring UK ISPs to join them in setting up a similar
scheme. Government minister Lord Triesman has threatened
new laws to force broadband providers to act against illegal
file-sharers if a voluntary agreement can't be reached, though said
that talks were progresssing well.
The BPI, which used to stand for the British Record Institute
but has now rebranded so that it stands for nothing, welcomed the
French move. Chief exec Geoff Taylor said: "The BPI has been
seeking to persuade ISPs for more than a year that they should
implement such procedures but progress has been limited."
A spokesman for the ISP trade association ISPA told The
Reg: "The BPI's opinion is up to them. The Department for
Business, Employment and Regulatory Reform is aware that we are
engaged with on this issue and we welcome contact from rights
holders."
All involved would prefer a voluntary settlement, but have to
negotiate the morass of domestic and European data protection,
human rights, ecommerce and intellectual property legislation.
Taylor continued: "We will continue to pursue voluntary
arrangements, but unless these are achieved very soon we believe
that the UK Government must act, as the French government has, to
ensure that the urgent problem of internet piracy is tackled
effectively."
ISPs, meanwhile, say the government is putting out confusing
messages by lauding the importance of access to internet economy
with one hand, but waving the stick of disconnecting people who use
it for file-sharing.
Our sources in the UK ISP and record industry say any deal here
won't be finalised until at least well into next year. Talks are
furthest advanced with the Motion Picture Ass. of America,
according to people familiar with the negotiations.
The French government documents including further details,
speeches, the list of participants can be seen
here.
© The Register
2007.
