UPC 1, Irish record labels 0
Jim Carroll
The legal action taken by four Irish major record labels against UPC, the third biggest internet service provider in Ireland, has not gone according to the script.
Per Ciara O’Brien’s report, Mr Justice Peter Charleton has ruled that “laws to identify and cut off internet users illegally copying music files were not enforceable in Ireland”.
The judge, who issued the ruling which allowed Eircom to proceed with their three-strikes-and-your-internet-is-cut-off policy back in April along with a quote from St Colmcille, said that laws were not in place in Ireland to enforce disconnections over illegal downloads despite the record companies’ complaints being merited. He also said this gap in legislation meant Ireland was not complying with European law.
The case was taken by Warner Music, Universal Music, Sony BMG and EMI Records to force internet service providers to adopt a “three strikes” rule to halt copyright infringement and piracy by internet users.
As Ciara notes in her report, “it is not yet known what effect the UPC judgment will have on Eircom’s agreement with record labels, which it settled on out of court last year.”
For the record labels, Dick Doyle from IRMA, the lobby group for Irish record labels, said it was now down to the government to close the doors. “The judge made it very clear that the Irish legislature had failed in its obligation to confer on the courts the right to grant such injunctions, unlike other EU states. We will now look to the Irish Government to fully vindicate the constitutional rights of copyright holders and we reserve the right to seek compensation for the past and continuing losses from the State.”
No doubt, there will be more on this in the coming months and years, especially when efforts are taken to sort out the statute book (or are there more pressing issues which warrant the attention of our legislators and elected representatives right now?). What will happen, for instance, if someone cut off by Eircom uses this ruling to cause a rumpus? Of course, all of this will just be small potatoes compared to what might happen if IRMA move to “seek compensation for past and continuing losses from the State”, as outlined by Dick Doyle above. If anyone expects the big wigs in the record industry to go quietly into the night, they’re very much mistaken.
i reckon dickie doyle is using the ‘past and continuing losses’ talk as threat to prick up the ears of politicians. they’d have zero chance of winning that one in court. internet law is, like any area of law, under continuing evolution but it’s particularly underdeveloped given that the phenomenon known as the internet is so young. he tried to take on nightclub owners (on a piece of legislation he drafted) a few years back over licensing and lost.. what judge (given the current economic ‘state’ of the country) is going to make irish taxpayers pay retrospective royalties to millionaire popstars (let’s face it that’s where a large chunk of said compensation would end up) because of a loophole in legality surrounding new technology??? pipe down dickie, spare us all that grandstanding rubbish..
well done that judge
MIA 12 nov tripod, this winter is packed with gigs
How come the same Judge ruled that Eircom could cut off access…… has he changed his mind in the interim?
Brendan – different points of law, I guess – that had to do with the right of access to the internet (the Data Protection Commissioner was involved in the Eircom case) whereas this was coming from the record labels’ side.
From a a very broad point of view this is very good news. Private companies effectively trying to get court judgements to act as regulation of telecommunications industry for private profit, rather than a set of laws is not something anyone should welcome. The ruling’s not entirely surprising give the judicial conservatism of Irish courts anyway.
Trying to build an artifical distribution system (to replace to physical distribution system that has been made redundant), built entirely on punishing behavior in the digital domain through court decisions, that is imposed on a system that by it’s nature is decentralised and unregulated, is not only stupid, it is fundamentally against the music industry’s interest. There is no longer a record industry, it cannot be replicated on the internet through decisions in the Commerical Court. Now is the time to have a conversation of what it means to be connected to the internet and the norms that should be translated into law. Gotta pay the piper. Internet licenses built into subscription fees? They replaced Radio licenses with Tv licesenses after all.
Irish record labels??? are they identically named local subsidairy’s of international labels by any chance. I just think the title of your piece is odd.
anyways – the issue on the table (in captain a land) is that the big five/four/three are using ireland as a whipping boy for the western world – the reason for this is that if they can set a few english language legal presidents by winning a few landmark cases here in relation to internets/copyrights then it makes it easier to export those laws. it saves them the relative expenses of going head to head with at+t or similar giants on the issues in the uk, usa and australia without having a few preemptive victories to trawl through the courts – - think about the state-by state kind of fight they’d have to engage with in the USA to get even a decision in the courts.. Irelands battles with the big five is like the garage era for the lawyers who will eventually take it on a worldwide stadium tour.
also may i add that on a personal level, multinationals trying to work our legal system for profit can fuck off, wether it ruins my supposed career chances or not.
captain a – they’re Irish record labels in that they’re based in Ireland, employ Irish people and pay Irish taxes. Yes, they’re part of multinational companies but they’re based here hence why I call them “Irish record labels”. As for the title, it’s akin to a football result – it may well become UPC 1, Labels 1 or even UPC 1, Labels 14 but right now it’s UPC 1, Labels 0
However I do agree with the bulk of your second paragraph especially “Irelands battles with the big five is like the garage era for the lawyers who will eventually take it on a worldwide stadium tour” (though it’s now the Big 4 – BMG were taken over by Sony). I’m intrigued as to why the “fight” has been so legal eagle-led here and I do think it’s a test grounds especially as regards European law.
Someone should also suggest to Lenihan to put a tax on costs awarded by the taxing master in cases like this to fund the courts service. Apparently some people (outside of NAMA) still have plenty of cash for lawyers.
I say screw the major labels and downloaders. Whatever happened to buying CDs and honest business? Surely I’m not the only one who buys his music hear and pays for it with his hard earned wages?
I know that the majors and downloaders have been accusing each other of all sorts of scumbag practices, and both could do with a slap to the face, but lets just find some good bands and record labels with some honest business practices and support them, ok? I know it’s a controversial point, but lets not forget the little people who want to make a good living.
Regardless of the court resutls, the indie labels and their related parties will get the shaft. A victory for the downloaders will mean more freeloading of music off someone trying to make an honest buck. The record labels will use the leverage of their victory to stamp down on the indie’s faces some more. You can’t trust them not to.
@Brendan 3 The judge has ruled that the 3 Strikes policy is legal and is pretty much watertight and doesn’t contravene any data privacy laws. What he ruled in the UPC case is that there is no law to force an ISP to implement the 3 strikes rule though he did indicate the the moral right was on the side of IRMA.