An Irish ministerial order that allows copyright holders to seek legal injunctions against some Internet service providers was signed into law last week. The law allows plaintiffs seek legal injunctions against Internet service providers that allow access to websites that contain copyrighted material.
The Irish Minister for Research and Innovation, Sean Sherlock, said upon signing the amendment, “I believe that in Ireland we must build on our very substantial achievements in the creative and digital media industry, and become a model of international best practice for innovation in the area.”
Online copyright concerns
The law comes after concern over Internet copyright boomed in 2011. With online media a major growth point, music industry and entertainment industry officials have been pushing for more stringent controls over the use of media online.
The move has encountered a lot of opposition, however, and has been dubbed the “Irish Sopa” in reference to the US Stop Online Piracy act, which was defeated after a robust campaign from major websites and activists. Those who were opposed to the “Irish Sopa” say that it’s a bad move because it doesn’t solve the legal problem of uncertainty that this law is suggested to solve.
Minister Sherlock went on to say that “Ireland is home to some of the world’s most innovative Internet companies, and we are determined to grow our reputation as a location where smart people and smart companies can innovate in this fast-moving area”.
An answer to the Internet copyright issue
There is a large amount of concern over Internet copyright law. Particularly for those who post content online like blogs, articles, white papers and video, there is not much by way of protection or comeback when these kinds of content are stolen, reproduced or plagiarized. Government policy remains murky.
There is now an answer to the online copyright question for organizations. Companies can take advantage of Digiprove’s Autoprotect technology to create a unique digital fingerprint & timestamp and legitimize online content in order to prove its origins, without the need to upload the content (It remains confidential to the owner/author).
www.digiprove.com
