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Journal of Intellectual Property, Information Technology and E-Commerce Law (JIPITEC)
The Digital Economy Act in the dock - a proportionate ruling?
by Monica Horten
Abstract: The UK's Digital Economy Act 2010 contains measures to enforce copyright on the Internet, specifically
a two-tiered form of a graduated response. The Act was challenged in the High Court by two of
the UK's biggest Internet Service Providers (ISP), who obtained a Judicial Review of the copyright enforcement
provisions. This paper is an overview of the case, based on the hearing of March 2011 and the
ensuing judgement. It focuses on the two most hotly contested grounds for the challenge, namely an alleged
failure to notify the European Commission under the Technical Standards Directive, and the proportionality
or otherwise of the contested provisions. It observes how the judgement accepted the defence
argumentation of the government and the copyright owners as interested parties, and how the ISPs appeared
to be put on the back foot.
JIPITEC is an open access journal. The full article is available here.
IPtegrity commentary
- EU law set for new course on child online safety
- MEPs reach political agreement to protect children and privacy
- UK border safety alert - mind the capability gap
- What? Will UK government ignore security as it walks away from EU?
- Betting on a costly space race: MPs probe OneWeb satellite deal
- Disrupting supply chains: how leaving the Single Market means systemic breakdown
- Big tech and anti-trust: an ill-fitting suit?
- Schrems ruling puts a spoke in UK data flows from 2021
- Digital rights - why they matter in a time of coronavirus
- EU upload filter - Germany's crucial deciding vote
- Copyright Directive upload filter - why EU Council should block it
- Data and Brexit - a mis-calculation?
- EU lawmakers seek to protect free speech in online content rules
- How Brexit rips up business models Part 2: visas for money and music
- How Brexit rips up business models Part 1: putting back barriers
- Norwegian Blue or Super-Canada - is there any life in this parrot?
- EU Copyright Directive - who pays the bill for the upload filter?
Published work
- Algorithms Patrolling Content: Where's the Harm?
- Content responsibility: The looming cloud of uncertainty for Internet intermediaries
- Freedom of Expression, Human Rights Standards and Private Online Censorship
- The Policy Challenge Of Content Restrictions: How Private Actors Engage The Duties Of States
- Internet Policy Review - The Aereo dilemma and copyright in the cloud
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About Iptegrity
Iptegrity.com is the website of Dr Monica Horten. I am an independent policy advisor, with expertise in online safety, technology and human rights. I am a published author, and post-doctoral scholar. I hold a PhD from the University of Westminster, and a DipM from the Chartered Institute of Marketing. I cover the UK and EU. I'm a former tech journalist, and an experienced panelist and Chair. My media credits include the BBC, iNews, Times, Guardian and Politico.
Iptegrity.com is made available free of charge for non-commercial use. Please link back and attribute Dr Monica Horten. Contact me to use any of my content for commercial purposes.