Japanese ISPs to Ban File-Sharers from the Internet
Date : 2008 03 17 Category : Web News
Continues disturbing trend of ISPs agreeing to terminate the connections of customers who ignore warnings to cease illegal file-sharing activity.
It's quickly and quietly becoming the year that ISPs around the world have decided to become the world's copyright cops. It began in France almost four months ago with an agreement between ISPs, copyright holders, and so-called "protectors" of French culture who hammered out a three-strikes-and-you-out policy for persistent illegal file-sharers.
In return for the govt's crackdown on illegal file-sharing, the French music industry agreed to drop DRM protections for French music, and the French movie industry also agreed to speed up the release of movies on DVD. For these "concessions" to the entertainment industry ISPs get to intrude on everybody's privacy, file-sharers and non file-sharers, and inspect each and every data packet that travels on their network for copyright infringing material.