Business Secretary Vince Cable was on strident form this morning, pledging to drop controversial web-blocking from the government’s plan to
tackle internet piracy. But his Conservative colleagues at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), Ed Vaizey and Jeremy Hunt, disagree. Ed Vaizey, the minister responsible for the
creative industries, is to chair a meeting on 20th September with internet service providers, copyright holders and other stakeholders, and web-blocking is on the agenda.
Originally, the government proposed blocking broadband access at addresses (both real and virtual) where illegal downloads took place. The prevailing consensus suggested that such a practice is unworkable and potentially unfair: why, for instance, should a café be barred just because one of its customers infringes copyright, and could one know which customer to prosecute? Hence Vince Cable’s comments today. However, the DCMS still envisages using web-blocking in some capacity and it is likely that the meeting next month will discuss which venues and forums should be exempted from an overall web-blocking strategy, as well as how that system might be policed. It will be interesting to see how the business department responds, especially as it appears to have the omnipotent Treasury’s backing in this fight.
It’s also worth noting that the government will not be immediately introducing the other measures laid out today by Vince Cable. Indeed, it will not adopt the recommendations of the Hargreaves report in full until the end of this parliament. This adds to the sense that the Digital Economy Act is stuck in an administrative morass from which it may never emerge, and it is feared that the uncertainty is discouraging digital investment at a time when economic innovation is necessary. The government is not finished legislating on these issues yet either: a new communications bill is expected before parliament next year, which will deepen the administrative quagmire.
Comments