Copyright Treaty
November 06, 2009
Wired reports "Copyright Treaty Is Policy Laundering at Its Finest"
http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2009/11/policy-laundering/
The language in the Sept. 30 memo shows the United States wants ISPs around the world to punish suspected, repeat downloaders with a system of “graduated response” — code for a three-strikes policy that results in the customer eventually being disconnected from the internet with the ISP alone deciding what constitutes infringement and fair use.
So, no trial - punishment apon accusation - and ISPs replacing courts.
(and remember, the ISP is liable themselves if they don't disconnect customer based only on accusation, and it turns out the customer were really infringing copyright - ISP have big incentive to just disconnect every time to avoid this liability)
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Yes, exactly. The issue is
Yes, exactly. The issue is that as ISPs transmit data across their own network (for their users) they're open to copyright infringement claims themselves unless they comply with the law. ISPs are therefore put into the role of policing copyright infringement accusations without judicial oversight against their customers, all while risking their business if they get it wrong. It's in this impossible situation and this poorly thought out law that bypasses the courts that ISPs are unlikely to be independent and dispassionate judges of right and wrong, but rather to think of their own interests. When you bypass the courts and due process in favour of a free market of risk-averse ISPs the nature of ACTA becomes more clear.
I'd call it Guilt Upon Accusation (rather than punishment upon accusation) because I think there's an implicit guilt before any punishment, and I think that you were right to put the morally reprehensible implicit judgment that occurs before a trial.
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