Copyright infringers will start to receive email notifications from their internet service providers

Michael Coyle
December 2, 2016

The music and movie industry has come to an agreement with the UKÂs top internet service providers (ISP) to send email warnings to alleged copyright infringers.

The plan has been in the works for several years, but this week a spokes person from the ÂGet it Right From a Genuine SiteÂ campaign said the plan would be operational in the first few months of 2017. The spokes person went on to explain that ÂEducational emails will help account owners and others who use their accounts to do the right thing and het their content form legitimate sources,Â

The notifications are just part of the larger Creative Content UK campaign that has already introduced anti-piracy ad campaign to highlight the consequences of illegally consuming content. These campaigns are focused around education and raising awareness to support UK creativity.

However, the email notifications will only target peer to peer file sharing, therefore users of file sharing websites and software will receive the notifications. Â This means that the copyright infringers that use streaming services or direct downloads will not receive such notifications. With the use of streaming and direct downloads on the rise and peer to peer file sharing on the decline, perhaps the email notifications have come a bit late.

Our counterparts in the US have had a similar measure that was implemented in 2013. The US Copyright Alert System has been branded a Âsix strikesÂ program. This is down to the fact that if copyright infringement is reported after the final warning, the ISPÂs have agreed to implement Âmitigation measuresÂ including bandwidth throttling.

The Get it Right From a Genuine Site campaign is confident that the notifications will help to tackle online copyright infringement in the UK, however, only time will tell. Â

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Written By:

Michael Coyle

Michael is Lawdit’s Principal and heads our Commercial and Intellectual Property Department. As a Solicitor Advocate, he is one of a select group of legal experts qualified to represent clients as an advocate in the Higher Courts in England and Wales. He holds a Master of Laws degree (LL.M) from Nottingham Trent University and is a guest lecturer at Southampton Solent University. He has also completed a teaching stint at the Academy of Music in Guildford where Michael taught copyright law. Michael is highly regarded for his work in all areas of intellectual property law (which includes the eCommerce and IT fields), litigation and company/commercial matters. He regularly advises on non-contentious issues including regulatory and statutory obligations and has been involved in many successful disputes, with a strong reputation for finding common sense and practical solutions for clients. In 2017, Michael was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Law from Southampton Solent University for his contribution to the University and his continued support to its students.