Net providers begin warning of illegal downloads
Posted: Feb 25, 2013 4:10 PM PST
Updated: Feb 25, 2013 4:12 PM PST
ANNE FLAHERTY, Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — Internet users who illegally share
music, movies or television shows online could soon receive warning notices
from the nation's five major Internet service providers.
The Copyright Alert System, organized by the recording
and film industry, is being activated this week to target consumers using
peer-to-peer software.
Under the new system, complaints will prompt an Internet
service provider — such as Verizon or AT&T — to notify a customer whose
Internet address has been detected sharing files illegally. A person will be
given up to six opportunities to stop before the Internet provider will take
more drastic steps, such as temporarily slowing their connection, or
redirecting Internet traffic until they acknowledge they received a notice or
review educational materials about copyright law.
Consumers who maintain they have been wrongly accused
would be forced to pay $35 to appeal the decision. The fee would be reimbursed
if they prevail.
Proponents say the focus is on deterring the average
consumer rather than chronic violators. The director of the organization behind
the system, Jill Lesser of the Center for Copyright Infringement, said in a
blog post Monday that the program is "meant to educate rather than punish,
and direct (users) to legal alternatives."
Each Internet provider is expected to implement their own
system. The program gives each customer five or six "strikes" after a
music or film company has detected illegal file-sharing and lodged a complaint.
The first alerts are expected to be educational, while the third and fourth
would require the customer to acknowledge that they have received the warnings
and understand their behavior is illegal. The final warnings are expected to
lead to "mitigation measures," such as slowing a person's Internet
connection speeds.
Officials involved in the effort acknowledge it's
unlikely to stop the biggest violators. There are ways to disguise an IP
address or use a neighbor's connection that is unlocked. Public wireless
connections, such as those offered at coffee shops, also won't be monitored.
Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.
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