A recent study by Birmingham University demonstrated how easy it is to detect the IP addresses of BitTorrent file-sharers.
About a year ago, the Portuguese anti-piracy organization, ACAPOR, dropped boxes full of about 2000 IP addresses of P2P users at the door of the Department of Investigation and Penal Action. Wearing tee-shirts proclaiming ‘file-sharing is illegal’, the message from ACAPOR was clear: a call to Portuguese arms against the file-sharers. In fact, reports TorrentFreak, “We are doing anything we can to alert the government to the very serious situation in the entertainment industry,” ACAPOR commented at the time, adding that “1000 complaints a month should be enough to embarrass the judiciary system.”
But it has backfired. “They tried to get the authorities to take action against file-sharers,” comments Dr Monica Horten at IPtegrity, “but instead, they’ve got an official ruling that file-sharing - at least for personal use - is not illegal.”
In a ruling last week, the Prosecutor has stunned the rightsholders: file-sharing for personal use is not illegal in Portugal. The Prosecutor made a number of points. Firstly it is not realistic to expect the public purse to pursue 2000 alleged infringers. Secondly, even if infringement occurred, an IP address does not identify the infringer. Thirdly, file-sharing for personal use is not copyright infringement. And fourthly, if an artist wishes to protect his work against copying, that artist must himself make it clear.
The rightsholders are not amused. “This is not a broad interpretation of the law, is a pure creation of law to justify not have to investigate!” complains ACAPOR (Google translation). It has already stated it will attempt to get the ruling annulled on the grounds that there “was not even an investigation,” while the Portuguese Society of Authors has said it is “perplexed”, and “will not stand idly by.”
This is clearly just a battle in a war. This one has been lost by the rightsholders, but they will fight on.