I didn't want to post the full story cause its even longer than this, but the bottom line is starting today most ISP's including Verizon, At&T, Comcast and others will have this "six strike" rule in effect. Which could ultimately get your service suspended...
Downloading music/movies...six strikes" system designed to curb copyright infringement will go live in the United States, affecting customers on many of the nations' top internet service providers (ISPs). While avoiding the most draconian of punishments proposed in past plans -- severing offenders' internet connections -- the system will carry serious consequences including connection throttling and forced "education" from anti-piracy groups.
Under the plan, copyright watchdogs like the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) -- groups that have been internationally involved in convictions or settlements involving their own "theft" of independent artists' work --will join peer-to-peer networks or BitTorrent transfers and log internet protocol (IP) addresses of people who are downloading "confirmed infringed content".
The first warning carries no action, but later warnings carry ISP-specific "Mitigation actions". The (sort of) good news is that there is a path to appeal warnings. Writes the CCI:
There is a $35 filing fee, which may be waived if you meet affordability criteria. The fee will be refunded if your challenge is successful.
Still, the system is a concern for real estate owners and Wi-Fi cafe owners, in that their services could be limited due to their customers’ actions. In many cases, it would be near impossible for such entities to police their customers’ actions.
The simple solution for business people in that situation is to cancel their service with AT&T, Verizon, Comcast, or Time Warner and seek a local alternative.
Of course that approach could be difficult in some regions, and may become infeasible if more ISPs jump on the CCI bandwagon. For now, though, there are alternatives for many customers who want to avoid the system.
Downloading music/movies...six strikes" system designed to curb copyright infringement will go live in the United States, affecting customers on many of the nations' top internet service providers (ISPs). While avoiding the most draconian of punishments proposed in past plans -- severing offenders' internet connections -- the system will carry serious consequences including connection throttling and forced "education" from anti-piracy groups.
Under the plan, copyright watchdogs like the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) -- groups that have been internationally involved in convictions or settlements involving their own "theft" of independent artists' work --will join peer-to-peer networks or BitTorrent transfers and log internet protocol (IP) addresses of people who are downloading "confirmed infringed content".
The first warning carries no action, but later warnings carry ISP-specific "Mitigation actions". The (sort of) good news is that there is a path to appeal warnings. Writes the CCI:
There is a $35 filing fee, which may be waived if you meet affordability criteria. The fee will be refunded if your challenge is successful.
Still, the system is a concern for real estate owners and Wi-Fi cafe owners, in that their services could be limited due to their customers’ actions. In many cases, it would be near impossible for such entities to police their customers’ actions.
The simple solution for business people in that situation is to cancel their service with AT&T, Verizon, Comcast, or Time Warner and seek a local alternative.
Of course that approach could be difficult in some regions, and may become infeasible if more ISPs jump on the CCI bandwagon. For now, though, there are alternatives for many customers who want to avoid the system.