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The law was passed after a long struggle in parliament, and in the teeth of bitter opposition from groups opposed to internet restrictions.Illegal downloaders will be sent a warning e-mail, then a letter if they continue, and finally must appear before a judge if they offend again.
The judge can impose a fine, or suspend their access to the internet.
The Creation and Internet Bill set up a new state agency - the Higher Authority for the Distribution of Works and the Protection of Copyright on the Internet (Hadopi).
The law was backed by President Nicolas Sarkozy and the entertainment industry.
Anyway, the UK seems to be next. And the EU and US are secretly negotiating a similar three-strikes-you're-out policy (keyword: ACTA). The end of the internet as we know it is near.
The end of the internet as we know it is near.
The end of free things anyway, but it's still going to be a long time. Personally i enjoy all the free things but if I was producing said content I would be pissed.
What do they plan on doing about sites that have pirated content that aren't hosted in the country? Sites that link to illegal content? If I watch a movie embedded on a site does that count as an illegal download?
A lot of this doesn't make sense and the only way I can see this working is if the govt. is watching what sites you go to. I know at least in America that would NOT go over well.
If realistically priced (cheap)music and video downloads are made available with no DRM, then the illegal down-loaders will become legit overnight. The entertainment industry fat cats seem to only know how to use the stick when the market is crying out for a nice juicy piece of carrot.
The French as usual have got it badly wrong and sadly in the UK our own dear Lord Mandelson is way ahead of them.
I remember Audio Galaxy a fantastic service which should have been legalised not prosecuted, I would have gladly paid a monthly fee for using it. I tunes and the many other "music" sites are restrictive and not user friendly. They are OK if you want to down-load all the currently popular stuff but that's about it. Also most of these sites won't let you search unless you join up. How ridiculous is that.
The legal/illegal download debate reminds me of the BBC's battle with the pirate radio ships in the 60's... The last time something wonderful was closed down and replaced with the establishment's inferior copy.
