Guest Weblog From France

Now here's a piece, lovingly translated into English, from the IPKat's friend in addition to swain blogger Jean-Baptiste Soufron:

Last December, the AFA (the French Internet access provider Association) announced that it had been asked yesteryear the SCPP (the French version of the RIAA) to cutting xx P2P users off from the internet. Led yesteryear Vivendi Universal Music’s Chairman Pascal Negre, the SCPP based its claims on a recent French Internet Law, the Loi Pour la Confiance dans l’Economie Numérique (LCEN, the Digital Economy Confidence Act) Article viii of which allowed Courts to suspend whatever evidently illegal content. They invoked particular urgency procedures, seeking to avoid confronting the P2P users in addition to avoiding the bad publicity such a matter could convey to French Music Producers.

The French Court refused to accede to the SCPP's request. Its determination of viii Oct has merely been made available yesteryear the Forum des Droits sur l’internet (Forum of Rights on Internet) here and here.

Instead granting the SCPP’s requests, the estimate explained that zip inward the instance justified the role of such procedures in addition to that the claimants had to larn through the amount normal procedure. Copyright infringements are never obvious plenty to let Courts to avoid hearing defense rights ("la SCPP ne précise pas les raisons pour lesquelles elle serait fondée à ne pas appeler les parties en cause": the SCPP is unable to laissez passer whatever argue why it would last allowed non to last addressed yesteryear the parties to the case).

The estimate adds an interesting argument, limiting the compass of the LCEN yesteryear stating that Article viii does non let the courts to cancel contracts betwixt Internet access provider in addition to users so every moment to cutting them from internet: all it does it to let courts to suspend access to disputed content temporarily: ("la mesure sollicitée à savoir la résiliation d’une convention permettant l’accès à network ne ressort pas de la compétence du juge des requêtes": the asking to cancel a contract providing network access is non inward the ability of this Court).

Jean-Baptiste-Soufron: "good news" ... till SCPP tries again

Pascal Negre’s SCPP so suffered ii set-backs inward 1 go. First, they were denied the correct to bargain alongside an Internet access provider without the burden of a existent trial. Secondly they gave the courts an chance to laissez passer a novel insight on the recent French Law yesteryear stating that it must non last interpreted every moment a tool to cutting P2P users from the internet.

It’s quite possible that the French SCPP volition before long laissez passer it a novel try, but it’s proficient tidings until then.

thank y'all Jean-Baptiste for his weblog in addition to hopes to have lots of comments on this controversial decision.

Un Weblog Juridique here