A popular internet service provider (ISP) in Australia has defended file-sharers on the issue of copyright law violations, saying that “chipped” or per piece downloading and sharing of a certain file will not qualify as piracy.
During a trial, iiNet questioned the claim of the Australian Federation Against Copyright Theft (AFACT) which says that ISP has given its consent to file-sharers to download or share movies which directly constitutes to violation of the copyright law.
In their defense, iiNet officials said that online users have not, whatsoever, shared or downloaded materials that are covered by copyright law. iiNet likewise questioned the said complaint by the AFACT, saying the availability of the materials to the public in “clip” format could not be considered as “illegal distribution” or violation of the said law.
The company stood pat on its claims and said that not a single one among their customers has engaged in “illegal file sharing” through the use of BitTorrent sites. The company reiterated that one-to-one or per piece file sharing format is a totally different thing in exchanging the whole movie, which is the only one covered by the copyright law.
The case stemmed from a complaint filed by the AFACT last November questioning the move of the iiNet to allow users to free download movie files. The federation is representing major movie makers such as Paramount Pictures, Warner Bros Entertainment, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Universal Pictures, Village roadshow, Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, Disney Enterprise Inc. and many more.
The movie makers are now pushing for the ISP to block users from accessing copyrighted materials.
The class suit is the first of its kind in Australia and the outcome will change the way courts handle the issue of copyrights law in the country.