Copyright (Infringing File Sharing) Amendment Act 2011

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Copyright (Infringing File Sharing) Amendment Act 2011
Coat of arms of New Zealand.svg
New Zealand Parliament
Royal assent 18 April 2011
Commenced1 September 2011
Amended by
Copyright Act 1994
Status: Current legislation

The Copyright (Infringing File Sharing) Amendment Act 2011 is an Act of the Parliament of New Zealand which amends the Copyright Act 1994.

Contents

The law became known informally as "Skynet"[ citation needed ] after National MP Jonathan Young compared the Internet to Skynet, the artificial intelligence network from the Terminator franchise, in the parliamentary debates on the then bill. [1]

Legislative history

The Copyright (Infringing File Sharing) Amendment Bill 2010, or Bill 119–1, was introduced to parliament on 23 February 2010. The Bill had its first reading and was referred to Commerce Committee on 22 April 2010. On 3 November 2010 the Commerce Committee reported on the Bill, then Bill 119–2. On 12 April 2011 the Bill had its second reading, committee of the whole House and third reading. The Bill received royal assent on 18 April 2011 and became an Act of Parliament. [2]

The Bill was passed "under urgency". [3]

The Copyright (Infringing File Sharing) Amendment Act 2011 repeals section 92A of the Copyright Act 1994. Section 92A was enacted by section 53 of the Copyright (New Technologies and Performers Rights) Amendment Act 2008 and would have required Internet service providers (ISPs) to adopt a process for disconnecting the internet access of subscribers suspected of repeat copyright infringement. Section 92A was criticised by civil liberty groups, academics and lawyers. As a result of the controversy, section 92A was repealed. [3]

Graduated response provisions

The Copyright (Infringing File Sharing) Amendment Act 2011 provides for what is known as graduated response. Under the Act copyright owners notify fixed-line ISPs (the Act does not apply to mobile networks until 2013) that they believe an internet subscriber is infringing their copyright through peer-to-peer filesharing, the ISPs in turn send warning notices to the relevant subscribers, and after three such warnings the copyright owner may take their case to the Copyright Tribunal. The Copyright Tribunal can impose a maximum $15,000 penalty on the Internet subscriber. The Act has extended the jurisdiction of the Copyright Tribunal for this purpose and the stated aim of the Act is to provide a "fast track, low cost process" to deal with allegations of copyright infringement through peer-to-peer filesharing. [3]

When the Bill was originally introduced to parliament it provided that a District Court could order the disconnection of internet subscribers for up to six months in certain circumstances. This provision has been amended and the new section 122PA provides that internet subscribers can not be disconnected until an Order in Council is made by the Governor General on the recommendation of the Justice Minister. It is anticipated that disconnection of internet subscribers will be considered in 2013, as part of the five-year review of the amendments to the Copyright Act 1994 made in 2008. [3]

Criticism

A rapporteur for the UN argued that "three strikes" laws that deprive alleged copyright infringers of Internet access violate human rights. [4] Sweden made remarks at the UN Human Rights Council that endorsed many of the report's findings, including the criticism of "three strikes" rules. The statement was signed by 40 other nations, including the United States and Canada. The United Kingdom and France, two nations that have enacted "three strikes" regimes, did not sign the statement. [5]

On 27 August 2011, protesters demonstrated against the Act in Auckland. [6] [7]

On 23 July 2012, despite the policy intent of making the issuance of copyright infringement notices under the legislation inexpensive, Telecom New Zealand revealed that under the new regime, it had cost them $534,416 to issue only 1,238 notices - or approximately $438 per notice, although this cost figure is not evidenced by any audited breakdown. The copyright holders are required to pay a fee of $25 to have the notices issued. [8]

Supporters

The graduated response as implemented by the Copyright (Infringing File Sharing) Amendment Act 2011 was not supported by the New Zealand Federation Against Copyright Theft (NZFACT) as they allege that Internet Protocol Address Providers (i.e. internet service providers) grossly exaggerated the fees required to handle the notices. [9] They argued that existing civil and criminal provisions for copyright infringement are ineffective. [3]

See also

Related Research Articles

Skynet may refer to:

Recorded Music NZ is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell recorded music in New Zealand. Membership of Recorded Music NZ is open to any owner of recorded music rights operating in New Zealand, inclusive of major labels, independent labels and self-released artists. Recorded Music NZ has over 2000 rights-holders.

File sharing in Canada relates to the distribution of digital media in that country. Canada had the greatest number of file sharers by percentage of population in the world according to a 2004 report by the OECD. In 2009 however it was found that Canada had only the tenth greatest number of copyright infringements in the world according to a report by BayTSP, a U.S. anti-piracy company.

A "notice and notice" system is used by some internet service providers (ISPs) in relation to the uploading and downloading activities of a user of a peer-to-peer file sharing network, otherwise known as "P2P". It may occur when an ISP receives notification from a rights holder to a copyrighted work that one of its subscribers is allegedly hosting or sharing infringing material. The ISP may then be required to forward the notice to the subscriber, and to monitor that subscriber's activities for a period of time. The ISP is not required to reveal the subscriber's personal information, nor does the ISP take any further steps to ensure that the allegedly infringing material is removed.

File sharing is the practice of distributing or providing access to digital media, such as computer programs, multimedia, program files, documents or electronic books/magazines. It involves various legal aspects as it is often used to exchange data that is copyrighted or licensed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Online Copyright Infringement Liability Limitation Act</span> 1998 U.S. federal law

The Online Copyright Infringement Liability Limitation Act (OCILLA) is United States federal law that creates a conditional 'safe harbor' for online service providers (OSP) by shielding them for their own acts of direct copyright infringement as well as shielding them from potential secondary liability for the infringing acts of others. OCILLA was passed as a part of the 1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) and is sometimes referred to as the "Safe Harbor" provision or as "DMCA 512" because it added Section 512 to Title 17 of the United States Code. By exempting Internet intermediaries from copyright infringement liability provided they follow certain rules, OCILLA attempts to strike a balance between the competing interests of copyright owners and digital users.

Graduated response is a protocol or law, adopted in several countries, aimed at reducing unlawful file sharing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Copyright (New Technologies) Amendment Act 2008</span>

The Copyright Amendment Act 2008 was an act passed by the New Zealand Parliament amending the Copyright Act 1994. It received Royal Assent on 11 April 2008.

The copyright law of New Zealand is covered by the Copyright Act 1994 and subsequent amendments. It is administered by Business Law Policy Unit of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE). In June 2017, a review of the existing legislation was announced.

<i>Roadshow Films Pty Ltd v iiNet Ltd</i>

Roadshow Films Pty Ltd & others v iiNet Ltd was a case in the Federal and High Courts of Australia between members of the Australian Federation Against Copyright Theft (AFACT) and other movie and television studios and iiNet, Australia's second-largest Internet service provider (ISP). The alliance of 34 companies unsuccessfully claimed that iiNet authorised primary copyright infringement by failing to take reasonable steps to prevent its customers from downloading and sharing infringing copies of films and television programs using BitTorrent.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Zealand Internet Blackout</span> 2009 New Zealand internet services protest

The New Zealand Internet Blackout was an online protest spearheaded by the Creative Freedom Foundation NZ against changes to copyright law in New Zealand, most notably Section 92A of the Copyright Amendment Act.

The French HADOPI law or Creation and Internet law was introduced during 2009, providing what is known as a graduated response as a means to encourage compliance with copyright laws. HADOPI is the acronym of the government agency created to administer it.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Copyright Act 1994</span>

The Copyright Act 1994 is an Act of Parliament passed in New Zealand that, along with its various amendments, governs copyright in New Zealand. It is administered by Intellectual Property Policy Unit of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Digital Economy Act 2010</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Digital Economy Act 2010 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The act addresses media policy issues related to digital media, including copyright infringement, Internet domain names, Channel 4 media content, local radio and video games. Introduced to Parliament by Lord Mandelson on 20 November 2009, it received Royal Assent on 8 April 2010. It came into force two months later, with some exceptions: several sections – 5, 6, 7, 15, 16(1)and 30 to 32 – came into force immediately, whilst others required a statutory instrument before they would come into force. However some provisions have never come into force since the required statutory instruments were never passed by Parliament and considered to be "shelved" by 2014, and other sections were repealed.

File sharing in the United Kingdom relates to the distribution of digital media in that country. In 2010, there were over 18.3 million households connected to the Internet in the United Kingdom, with 63% of these having a broadband connection. There are also many public Internet access points such as public libraries and Internet cafes.

Copyright Alert System (CAS) was a voluntary industry effort to educate and penalize internet users who engage in the unauthorized and unlawful distribution of copyrighted works via peer-to-peer file sharing services. The program was operated by the Center for Copyright Information, a consortium consisting of the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), and the internet service providers AT&T, Cablevision, Comcast, Time Warner Cable, and Verizon.

The Center for Copyright Information (CCI) is an American organization focused on advocacy and initiatives in support of copyright law. The CCI aims to educate the public about copyright law; coordinates with copyright owners and Internet service providers (ISPs) about issues related to online copyright infringement; assists with the design, implementation, review, and promotion of an online infringement notification and mitigation system ; collects and disseminates online infringement data; and promotes lawful means of obtaining copyrighted works. The organization was created as a partnership between industry associations, including the Motion Picture Association of America, the Recording Industry Association of America, and five major American Internet service providers.

Copyright law of South Korea is regulated by the Copyright Act of 1957. It has been amended several times, with a recent 2009 revision introducing a three strikes policy for online copyright infringement.

<i>Copyright Modernization Act</i>

An Act to amend the Copyright Act, also known as Bill C-11 or the Copyright Modernization Act, was introduced in the House of Commons of Canada on September 29, 2011 by Industry Minister Christian Paradis. It was virtually identical to the government's previous attempt to amend the Copyright Act, Bill C-32. Despite receiving unanimous opposition from all other parties, the Conservative Party of Canada was able to pass the bill due to their majority government. The bill received Royal Assent on June 29, 2012 becoming the first update to the Copyright Act since 1997.

File sharing in Singapore relates to the distribution of digital media in that country. In January 2019, there were about 12,971,500 households connected with a broadband connection to the Internet in Singapore. There are also many public Internet access points such as public libraries and Internet cafes.

References

  1. ↑ "Controversial internet file-sharing law passed". 14 April 2011. Archived from the original on 16 April 2011. Retrieved 7 August 2013.
  2. ↑ "Copyright (Infringing File Sharing) Amendment Act 2011 No 11 – Legislative History". legislation.govt.nz. Retrieved 17 May 2011.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Deeks, Claire (14 April 2011). "Controversial Copyright (infringing file sharing) Amendment Bill passes into law". James & Wells Intellectual Property. Archived from the original on 3 June 2011. Retrieved 17 May 2011.
  4. ↑ enigmax (3 June 2011). "UN: Disconnecting File-Sharers Breaches Human Rights". TorrentFreak . Retrieved 21 February 2012.
  5. ↑ Lee, Timothy B. (14 June 2011). "US, NZ, Sweden, others condemn "three strikes" Internet laws". Ars Technica . Condé Nast Publications . Retrieved 21 February 2012.
  6. ↑ Victoria Robinson (27 August 2011). "Protesters block off Queen Street". AucklandNOW – stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 27 August 2011.
  7. ↑ "Small gathering for protest at copyright". The New Zealand Herald . 27 August 2011. Retrieved 27 August 2011.
  8. ↑ Tom Pullar-Strecker (23 July 2012). "Four in 10 Kiwis still flout piracy laws". stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 23 July 2012.
  9. ↑ "NZFACT Fee Review Submission". NZFACT . Ministry of Economic Development. 1 May 2012. Retrieved 7 September 2012.
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