The Importance of Internet Regulation in Fighting Piracy and Enforcing Copyright Claims

Piracy has become a major issue in the United States. For every motion picture that has been featured in theaters also has been pirated onto the Internet the next day, and for every new musical album that is released, yet there is a free torrent file of the album within the same hour. Even though these online pirates steal music and movies from other companies and make a drastic profit, yet these “rogue” websites receive 53 billions visits a year from across the globe according to Creative America. The persistence of the thieves that break copyright laws of the productions has lead the entertainment business to place a definitive complaint to the U.S. government of the constant notion of piracy. While the notion of piracy was not left

In the global market that we leave in companies are trying to find any and everyway that they can to get ahead in their respective markets. This most of the time brings out the most innovate thinkers that can come up with a way to keep it’s company on top of their market and sometimes we see that there are companies that like to take a short cut by using non legal and malicious methods. According to Lewis, (1985), Software piracy is the illicit copying of the operating instructions and applications programs, which make computers work, is a large and growing industry. The Pirate Bay is part of a European social and political movement that opposes copyrighted content and demands that music, videos, TV shows, and other digital content be free and unrestricted. In the words of the Pirate Party, “the Pirate Bay is a unique platform for distributing culture between regular people and independent artists, and that’s something we want to preserve.”

The pervasive nature of the Internet has made the copying of music and software exceptionally easy, fast and for the most part, undetectable. The ubiquity of the Internet and the speed at which music and software can be copied is also changing the sociological and legal aspects of computing as well (De George, 2006). For the first time the availability of technology is driving a level of expertise with computer users globally that give them the opportunity to capture, distribute, duplicate and even re-publish massive amounts of intellectual property that isn't theirs (Wilson, 2007). This is forcing the issue of copyright infringement and the protection of intellectual property at a global scale. In so doing, this dynamics is also re-ordering ethics surrounding all forms of digital content as well.

Australian copyright law as it stands does not anticipate or take into account existing and new technologies in society. The internet has profoundly changed the way individuals’ access, share and create content. It enables widespread and extensive access to knowledge instantaneously, fosters

Traditional legal principles and processes are constantly challenged by the need to keep pace with copyright issues in particular piracy. The Copyright Amendment (Online Infringement) Bill 2015

With over three billion people in the world utilizing the internet there is great danger for copyright infringement to occur (Internet Live Stats). Copyright law protects the creator of an original piece of work exclusive rights to the work. Many people who use the internet are sharing files that do not belong to them and are guilty of copyright infringement. Copyright law needs to be tightened up in the digital space to protect the creator of their unique work.

Along with the development of a file format (MP3) to store digital audio recordings, came one of the new millennium’s most continuous debates – peer-to-peer piracy – file sharing. Internet companies such as Napster and Grokster became involved in notable legal cases in regards to copyright laws in cyberspace. These two cases are similar in nature, yet decidedly different. In order to understand the differences and similarities, one should have an understanding of each case as well as the court’s ruling.

Current copyright protection is entitled to provide the essential mechanism for the insurance of the success viability of creative industries by rewarding and incentivising the creators of original works relating to films, music and broadcasts. The Copyright Act 1968 is initially designed to protect although, despite this, the advancement of technology has led to abuse of the Act, subsequently to withhold its dexterity, the Act has required modification, through; case and statute law. While acknowledging this, it must be understood that the codes; Copyright Act 1968 (Cth), Copyright Regulations 1969 (Cth), Copyright Tribunal Procedure Regulations 1969 (Cth) and the Copyright International Protection Regulations 1969 (Cth) are applied automatically once the work has been published in an accessible format; provided that the author/s are current citizens or residents of Australia. Throughout this report, the Copyright Act 1968 will be analysed in depth to provide a detailed understanding of whether it is possible for the law to be proactive with regards to future technologies. In a developing world of rapid changes and advancements in technology and human behaviour, there is no specific measure that can completely eliminate online copyright infringement.

While many people make a living from labor or technical skills, others’ occupations regard the use their intellectual property. For protection of distribution and tampering of their work, those originators copyright their work. As this phenomenon became universal, the World Intellectual Property Organization was created with the purpose of preserving work. As a response, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act was signed. The DMCA implemented both the WIPO Copyright Treaty and the WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty. Also known as the “Internet Treaties,” they both were “created to address changes in digital technology and communications, particularly the distribution of

Since the 1990’s, the world has experienced boundless improvements and expansion with information systems, technology and the Internet, and as a result, laws have had to evolve as well. Such laws have been up against some very complex and sensitive issues such as how to control piracy of copyrights. In response to such complex issues, Congress passed the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) of 1998.

Online piracy is commonly referred to as a threat to businesses in the creative industries. The WTO Agreement on Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (a.k.a. “the TRIPS” agreement) defines piracy as:

Copyright infringement has become a serious issue in today’s world. Owners of this material lose money every time an image or any material is used illegally. The Internet has brought about more opportunities for someone to steal copyrighted material. An Internet user can simply copy and image, save it, and use it for their own gain while the holder of the copyright of that image gets nothing. This situation was becoming an issue so in 1997 the United States government enacted the No Electronic Theft Act to help stop this from occurring.

Identify and discuss these copyright challenges in the modern digital economy using examples from case law.

This essay discusses the usefulness of the Digital Economy Act (the 2010 Act) in preventing infringement of copyright. The essay will start off discussing the provisions which imposed ISPs to stop individuals from infringing copyright. Followed by analysing the 2010 Act which caused widespread controversy and outrage in the United Kingdom. Moreover, my intention is to ascertain whether it has been effective since its implementation. Also, I will briefly outline the key provisions relating to infringement of copyright. I will consequently restrict comments to some copyright-related issues, concentrating on peer-to-peer file sharing over the Internet. Thirdly, practical examples will be given to evaluate the DEA. Using legislation, case law and journal articles I will present my findings.

The rise of the Internet era opened the whole new market for traditional media full of opportunities as well as threats. Online piracy being one of them because the music and film industry loses £5.4bn in a year and if it was reduced by 10% it could have created up to 13 thousand jobs in the UK. There are various attempts taken to fight with online piracy; a case study of Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement will be considered as well as other legislations attempting to regulate copyrights in the Internet. This