Infinite Path

It’s a fight that’s been brewing for a long while now but things are starting to turn really nasty between the advocators of cutting off illegal file sharers and those who deem it an infringement of basic human rights.

TalkTalk, a company which falls firmly in the latter camp, are threatening to take legal action if Peter Mandelson, whose plan it is to disconnect those individuals who persist in making illegal downloads, gets his own way. TalkTalk is the second largest ISP in Britain, with over four million customers, and they believe that the government’s plans go against the concept of people being innocent until proven guilty.

The worry is that the process being proposed by Mandelson and other proponents of the plan, which could come into effect in July 2011, will lead to wrongful accusations and individuals being disconnected when they have done nothing wrong. TalkTalk maintain that they will “resist any attempts to make it impose technical measures on its customers unless directed to do so by a court or recognised tribunal”.

The government’s plans certainly aren’t set in stone just yet and, in fact, the proposal, deemed as drastic by many, is likely to be abandoned altogether if a 70% reduction in online piracy is achieved after sending out warning letters. However, even the theoretical threat of such extreme measures is enough to anger companies such as TalkTalk, who have been quick to state that they will not hold back from launching legal action over the issue. BT have also spoken out against the plans, with their spokesperson also bringing the topic of courts and legal action into the equation.

It would seem that a rocky year lies ahead for the government with regards to this issue, which has caused so much division amongst individuals and companies, whilst still only being in its planning stages.