16/11/2010

Illegal file sharers and downloaders in the UK can heave a sigh of relief with the news that the High Court has ordered a judicial review of the controversial Digital Economy Act.

The controversial act was passed just days before the outgoing Labour government relinquished power to the incumbent Liberal Democrat-Conservative coalition government. The UK’s largest Internet Service Providers British Telecom and TalkTalk joined hands in July and moved Court, arguing that cutting off persistent file sharers would be in breach of European human rights laws. A judge will now examine the Act in February 2011 and make recommendations.

Andrew Heaney, executive director of strategy and regulation at TalkTalk, said, “We are very pleased that the Court has recognised that our concerns about the copyright infringement provisions in the Digital Economy Act should be considered in a full hearing. The Act was rushed through Parliament in the ‘wash-up’ with only 6% of MPs attending the brief debate and has very serious flaws. The provisions to try to reduce illegal file-sharing are unfair, won’t work and will potentially result in millions of innocent customers who have broken no law suffering and having their privacy invaded.

“We look forward to the hearing to properly assess whether the Act is legal and justifiable and so ensure that all parties have certainty on the law before proceeding.”

The judge could well look at neighbouring Ireland, where last month the High Court ruled that proposed laws cutting off Internet users who have illegally downloaded content cannot be enforced there.