Telecoms don?t want to know about filesharing problem
TalkTalk, Orange, and BT as well as Which? are some of the top telecom companies and consumer watch groups that believe the new proposals from the Government regarding illegal filesharing are not realistic.
Lord Mandelson proposed to the top five telecoms providers in a meeting that in order to reduce and prevent people from illegal downloads it should be the provider?s jobs to cut their internet connection as punishment.
David Geffen and Mandelson came up with the idea while dining together in Corfu. This is not the firs the first disapproval of the idea, as the Digital Britain Review from the Lord Carter earlier in the year rejected the idea as well.
Representatives from the telecoms industry and consumer groups stated in a press release that the move to make broadband operators responsible would threaten the rights of consumers and also would stall new development in terms of service offerings.
The group collectively wrote a statement that stated that punishment measures for illegal downloading should be run by Ofcom and not the service providers.
The statement also addressed the fact that consumers need to be considered innocent until they are found guilty and that taking away the process of due law by cutting internet connections does not allow consumers the right to defence.
The statement by the group also stated that ISPs and consumers should not be given the responsibility of paying for the disciplinary actions since most customers do not engage in illegal file sharing and thus the content industry would face high costs that could prevent further advancement.
The ISP Karoo began cutting off those suspected of illegal downloads in July, but quickly stopped after public outcry followed their move stating that they decided to take a more moderate approach by following a new ?three strikes and you?re out? guideline
