3. 3
How the Digital Economy Act Initial Obligations work
Identify
subscriber
Database of
infringing
subscribers
IP Address: 192.xxx.xxx.xx
Time: 11am 23 May 8 2012
File: The Adventures
of Tin Tin
Infringement Reports
Serious Infringer List
A 1,2,10, 50, 60
B 5, 7,24,35,100
Appeals
Body
Subscribers
can
challenge
Copyright Owner Internet Service Provider Subscriber
Notice of
Infringement
The Digital Economy Act - implementation & challenges
Confidential
4. 4
Digital Economy Act prescribes three possible
measures for addressing online copyright infringement
1. The Initial Obligations
Notification and identification of serious infringers
2. Technical Obligations
Notification and restrictions on internet access
3. Website blocking
(http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/binaries/internet/site-blocking.pdf)
The Digital Economy Act - implementation & challenges
Confidential
Ofcom’s Code addresses 1.
2 and 3 not in force.
5. 5
• Timetable and litigation
Six key complexities in implementing the DEA
• How can we ensure an appropriate consumer redress mechanism?
• What is an appropriate standard of evidence?
• Who is covered? Which ISPs should be subject to the Code?
• Unintended consequences: Libraries – a ‘chilling effect’? / Wi-Fi
• Definitional uncertainty - What is an ISP / what is a subscriber?
The Digital Economy Act - implementation & challenges
Confidential
6. Who, what, how much, how, why, why not …
6
Some key questions about infringement …
InfringementInfringement
How much
infringement?
How much
infringement?
Who
does it?
Who
does it?
How and
why?
How and
why?What
would
stop it?
What
would
stop it?
What
impact?
What
impact?
7. How confident are you that you know what is legal and what isn’t in terms of downloading,
streaming/accessing, and sharing content through the internet?
7
29% of the top 20% of infringers claim they are not confident about
what is legal online, compared to 44% for all internet users
65% confident
71% confident 29% not confident
34% not confident
56% confident 44% not confident
Question
Confidence in what is legal and what isn’t
8. Factors that would encourage infringers to stop
8
What would encourage them to stop? The top five stated reasons are
all about improvements to legal services
Bottom 80%
Infringers
Top 20%
Infringers
