ISPs React to Lord Mandelson's Drastic Anti-Piracy Plans

Internet service provider TalkTalk wants to take the matter to court

In a P2PON post two days ago we reported about Lord Mandelson's plans (read: threat) to implement the “three strikes” policy from July 2011 if the sending warning letters to suspected pirates fails to lead to a 70 percent reduction in illegal file sharing.

As expected, (new) critics were quick to come: Internet service provider TalkTalk has launched a threat of its own against Lord Mandelson's plans. The ISP wants to sue the British Secretary but according to lawyers for the case has to wait for European laws that are still pending.

On the TalkTalk's blog, the company’s executive director of strategy and regulation expressed their total disagreement with Mandelson's principle of ‘guilty until proven innocent’:

The unintended consequence of Lord Mandelson's plan will be to encourage more wi-fi and PC hi-jacking and expose more innocent people to being penalised.

TalkTalk will continue to resist any attempts to make it impose technical measures on its customers unless directed to do so by a court or recognised tribunal.

In the event we are instructed to impose extra judicial technical measures we will challenge the instruction in the courts. Last week we launched a campaign against Lord Mandelson's plans called Don’t Disconnect Us.

Whether or not TalkTalk may have a solid case here depends mainly on the results of formal talks in the European Commission concerning the extent of the internet piracy laws.

From TalkTalk's blog:  "Today we are launching an online campaign using a specially commissioned Brightdance from Michael Bosanko, the original bright dancing artist. It features a pair of scissors cutting a computer cable. The film may also be used in an X Factor ad break."