The UK government has recently announced its plan to substitute lenient ways of punishing individuals engaged in online piracy, as proposed by the Digital Britain report, with the more punitive action of broadband disconnection. The decision has raised eyebrows in the ISP community and even politicians have voiced their concerns over the move.
Former Cabinet Secretary Tom Watson MP openly criticised Lord Mandelson for being rash in taking such a decision. While talking on Radio 4’s PM programme, he expressed his disappointment at the proposal. His opinion was later echoed by Liberal Democratic MP and party culture and media spokesman Don Foster, who added that the new proposal was a dangerous decision taken in haste. He said a strict implementation of the proposal could mean disconnection for parents whose children download stuff from internet without their knowledge.
Internet service providers also opposed the decision. Talk Talk took the lead in voicing its discontent followed by Virgin Media, which spoke to BBC and expressed fears of consumer alienation due to this excessively strict approach towards suspected defaulters. Several other broadband providers and politicians also expressed their opinions against the proposal.
Conservative MP John Whittingdale, who is known for his staunch support of Lord Mandelson, also objected to this U-turn in the government’s stand. He said the government should take recourse to less harsh punishments for dealing with online piracy instead of prosecution in this manner. He believes it is highly improbable that the bill will be passed by the parliament in the wake of the stiff opposition against it.
However, it is reported that the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has refuted all the claims of disregarding the proposal made in the original Digital Britain publication. Nevertheless, the current debate and the Department’s wavering on the issue may prevent the government from reaching a more agreeable solution to the present problem.
