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Irish labels sue again to force UPC to enact three-strikes
By Chris Cooke | Published on Thursday 13 February 2014
While the Irish record industry has successfully secured web-blocking injunctions against The Pirate Bay, the labels there still want the internet service providers to participate in a three-strikes type system, sending out warning letters to suspected file-sharers.
As previously reported, Ireland’s biggest tel co Eircom reached a voluntary settlement with the country’s record industry to set up a three-strikes style system to target file-sharers. Despite a challenge over the legality of the scheme, the anti-piracy programme is still ongoing.
After reaching its deal with Eircom the Irish record business pledged to pressure the ISP’s competitors to introduce similar schemes, though in that domain it has been a lot less successful. Ireland’s second biggest net firm UPC hasn’t been especially willing to play ball, and has fought legal efforts to force it to introduce three-strikes, arguing such measures would require a change in Irish law.
UPC prevailed first time round, but according to the Irish Times the labels are having another go, believing that it now has the country’s political community on its side. According to the newspaper, Irish record industry trade body IRMA monitored UPC customers during November last year and reported 7757 copyright infringements to the net firm. The (slightly paraphrased) message from IRMA: do something about this you bastards.
But UPC still argues that ploughing ahead with a three-strikes programme would raise a “serious question of freedom of expression and public policy and demands fair and impartial procedures in the appropriate balancing of rights”. That, Team UPC say, would require a three-strikes law to be introduced.
The new legal action has been filed with Ireland’s Commercial Court, with a hearing in the case scheduled for April.
