AFACT invites ISPs to discuss copyright theft after Americans implement six strikes system

The Australian Federation Against Copyright Theft has contacted some of the nation’s largest internet service providers to invite them to participate in talks about how they could potentially inform users of copyright breaches.

The move comes after major American ISPs have stuck a deal with copyright holders that will see the industry implement a “six strikes” measure for infringements. 

However AFACT says the two incidents are not connected.

“We have always looked to work closely with ISPs to prevent online copyright theft on their networks and promote the distribution of legal content online,” AFACT said, adding that it “has always been open to discussions and negotiations with ISPs.”

Telstra has received the letter, according to the Australian Financial Review. A reply was not available from the company prior to publication and Optus declined to comment. 

The letter comes just months after the Federal Court ruled against AFACT in its ongoing legal battle against iiNet, where the association accused the ISP of essentially approving copyright infringements by users because it did not inform them that infringements were taking place.

The Federal Court has now twice ruled in iiNet’s favour but AFACT points out that this year’s appeal delivered some support for its position, namely that ISPs may have some responsibility to inform users of their actions.

“The Federal Court agreed with us and found that ISPs have a role to play in preventing online copyright theft,” AFACT said.  “This is simply an invitation to ISPs to engage with us to fulfil their obligations.”

AFACT is taking the battle to the High Court and in the meantime is seeking to investigate some form of notification system.

Executive director Neil Gane said earlier this year that the court has confirmed large scale copyright infringements were occurring, that iiNet knew it was occurring and that iiNet has the capability to do something about the problem.

Critics say AFACT’s members – including some of the largest Hollywood studios and production houses – are only blaming ISPs for their own failures to keep up with digital distribution and downloadable content, but the voluntary implementation of a system in the US may provide scope for a similar scheme here.

Experts said ISPs will more likely want to come to an agreement rather than waiting for iiNet to potentially lose a High Court ruling.

The American model has seen major telcos – including AT&T, Verizon, Comcast and Time Warner Cable – agree to a voluntary plan that would implement a six strikes system.

They have agreed to send out infringement notices if illegal actions are detected and they have said they will protect privacy details but won’t provide information unless forced to do so.

Electronic Frontiers Australia spokesman Stephen Collins says any notification system needs to ensure that the right people are targeted.

“Certainly EFA doesn’t object to people defending their perfectly legitimate ISP, that makes complete sense,” he says.

“If there was going to be a warning system, given the problems that have happened with other systems, we would certainly want to make sure the chains of evidence were good enough to suggest that particular person receiving a notice had been doing it.”

The American agreement has placed large emphasis on educating users rather than punishment and Collins says that is a sensible approach.

“Education is a good thing. We should be educating people about copyright infringement on legitimate works,” he says.