I watched with interest the progress of the digital economy bill last week. If you missed the news about it, the Government succeeded in pushing through the bill in the ‘wash-up’ period – the days before parliament is dissolved in preperation for the election.

The DEB brings about a range of new laws and legislations, but the most controversial are the actions that ISPs can now take against illegal file-sharers. ISPs must now send a series of letters to any internet account holder whose line has been used for illegal activities. If the activities still occur, the ISP will be permitted to terminate the account for a certain period.

For me, the bill is a great example of how badly technology is still understood and how difficult this issue is to solve. This bill is clearly intended to root out the worst file-sharers and stop the downloading and sharing of illegal material; but it will do nothing of the sort.

File-sharers will always find ways round the system – the use of VPNs or FTPs have already been touted by many as a way of encrypting the flow of content.

The people this bill will potentially hurt is those who don’t know that illegal activity is happening on their account – parents, small businesses, hotels etc.

Could this even see the end of free Wifi?

For me, this is an incredibly short-sighted bill. One that has come about through intense lobbying by a body that is shit scared of what will happen to it in the future – the music and film industry. And both of the main parties (excluding of course Tom Watson and a few others) are equally to blame.

I have much sympathy for content creators, indeed I used to work in the music industry so know the problems inside out. This is just not the way to deal with it.

When technology is concerned, there is often no quick fix, but there is often plenty of ignorance.

picture credit

Danny Whatmough