All major Internet Service Providers in the UK are being asked to create a database of their customers who illegally download movies, music and other content protected by copyright law.
The move is supposed to be legally enforceable under the Digital Economy Act 2010, which was designed to combat piracy, but with the delays it looks like its full implementation will only begin in 2014.
If Virgin Media, BT, BSkyB and TalkTalk sign up to the proposal, it is expected that the data they collect could then be used to identify offenders, send warning letters, disconnections or even prosecutions for repeat offenders.
Tackling digital piracy will be one of the topics to be discussed by record labels, the BPI, and Prime Minister David Cameron at a meeting to be held in Downing Street on the morning of September 12.
Film and music companies will ask providers to voluntarily sign a pre-agreement that would turn them into internet policemen on their behalf. The Guardian reports that negotiations have already been underway for months with the BPI and the British Video Association, (of which the BBC and Hollywood studios are members).
The preliminary agreement will have to be approved and signed by Internet service providers (ISPs), who will be tasked with creating a database of offenders. Violators will be sent warning letters notifying them that their Internet address has been used for illegal downloads.
The letters will also warn of further consequences in the event of continued copyright infringement.
If violators ignore the warning letters, sanctions will be imposed, such as banning access to certain websites, slowing down internet connections, or even criminal prosecution.
But there are some problems for ISPs. First, if such a database is created and maintained, who will bear the costs? Could the content industries perhaps fund the argument?
It would be unfair to observe an increase in the cost of the Internet, since not everyone downloads illegally.
Second, a database and warning letters could put Internet providers out of business as the Data Protection Act states that companies can only store information about individuals for commercial purposes.
A TalkTalk spokesperson told the Guardian newspaper that, “I would like to reach an agreement but the rights of customers always come first” and “they will never agree to anything that will put them at risk.”
A spokesperson from Virgin Media also had similar concerns, commenting that the proposal is “unworkable.”.
Loz Kaye, leader of the Pirate Party in the UK, told Naked Security:
The content industry seems determined to transform Internet Service Providers into NSAs.
