Digital Economy Bill - Second Reading

At the second reading debate of the Digital Economy Bill in the House of Lords last week, general support was expressed for the idea of imposing duties on ISPs to improve the enforcement of online copyright. There was some concern about the extent of powers that would be granted to the Secretary of State to impose new legal requirements without Parliament's approval, and also of the amount of detail that was left to a Code of Practice and thereby also excluded from Parliamentary debate. The next stage of the Bill is the detailed discussion of its text and any proposed amendments in the Lords Committee Stage, scheduled to take place in January.

The current text of the Bill has also been analysed by lawyers and similar conclusions reached. Francis Davey, for the Open Rights Group, looks at the lack of Parliamentary scrutiny and uncertainties over who will be included within the Bill's scope, since the definitions of both "Internet Access Provider" and "Subscriber" seem open to varying interpretations. Lilian Edwards of Sheffield University has a series of articles on the possible implications for businesses and individuals who allow their networks to be used by others.

The current European Commissioner has also stated that national laws permitting disconnection of Internet users without prior authorisation by a judge will breach the new European law on Telecommunications. The current draft of the UK Bill only gives a limited right of appeal after disconnection, so appears likely to conflict with this opinion if passed without significant modification.