France passes three-strikes bill

This is France...

Why aren't they burning MP3's in the streets?!

There has to be some counter-penalty for false accusations too here, otherwise the collection agency would be stupid not to email and write to everyone in the country ready to pounce at the €300,000 windfall for anyone caught. Because those pesky kids cost Vanessa Paradis and Johnny Halliday €300,000 each, y'know...

Evil Empire

Welcome the new Branch of the MPAA/RIAA: France.

how many other coutry can the MPAA/RIAA afford to buy?

@ Graham Marsden

Good point, but they might be able to get around that particular obstacle by claiming it's a civil offense, not a criminal one. However, I think the French presumption of innocence clause covers both., so hopefully the court will scuttle this one as well.

@ Mectron

The MPAA and RIAA have entered a new phase by getting recording artists to strike up Matahari type relationships with world leaders. Bruni is a RIAA agent. You mark my words, Lily Allen will be giving David Cameron blowjobs in anticipation of him becoming PM.

Nice to know...

that France has so few problems that its governing body can afford the time to drop their trousers, bend over and open their collective ass cheeks to big business.

Copyright infringement should be a civil matter, the copyright holders have the means to seek redress should they wish to, and the accused infringer has the means to mount a defence.

The huge copyright holders wanted this to become a criminal matter to save themselves the cost of protecting their own property. If having infringement revert to a civil matter would save or earn these businesses €0.01 per year they would demand that the law be changed again.

You politicians who voted for this law have become the puppets of the organizations who are robbing your constituents. If you had any honour you would resign.

European Convention on Human Rights

As Graham Marsden points out, this law is probably in conflict with the European Convention on Human Rights, to which all member states are signed up. AFAIK, the EU are looking at the French legislation with this in mind.

It is the same issue as in the UK - the media owners and their representatives have found the issue of due process expensive and time-consuming. They have to actually prove what they claim - it would be convenient if they could just skip that step and have someone penalised without the tricky issues of proof and defence getting in the way.

@ AC 7:58

"Nice to know that France has so few problems that its governing body can afford the time to drop their trousers, bend over and open their collective ass cheeks to big business."

Er shouldn't that be:

"Nice to know that France has so few problems that its governing body can afford the time to make their whole serfdom drop their trousers, bend over and open their collective ass cheeks for a huge rimming by big business."

@Graham Marsden

It's not that "the music and media industry is more interested in protecting their profits than protecting human rights..."

It's not a matter of interest, it's that they are actually sacrificing (and have persuaded the republic peoples representatives to do so) human rights for profit.

Sam

"ordonnace pénale"

My comment is not intended to be for or against this law, I just want to explain what an "ordonnace pénale" ("penal order" in english) is.

It is a procedure that already exists in France. It is not being introduced by this law. It allows the prosecutor to notify you by letter of a proposed sentence (monetary, general interest work, compulsory treatment, but not jail time). You can either accept the sentence or reject it and go to court where the prosecutor will again suggest the sentence but a judge will decide.

It is inspired by the "plead guilty" procedure in the US with the notable difference that it is strictly limited to minor offeces. There is no way to handle a murder case through a penal order in France.

This simplified procedure was put in place to save time and it does save a lot of time and money to the juducuary administration indeed.

Democracy gone .... missing?

This proves once again that - in all our western countries - our vote counts as nothing before the whims of big business, whether it's a media industry gone mad, or banksters doing more damage than 9/11 and then walking away.

As my late father used to say, "If voting ever changed anything, they wouldn't allow it"....

Well . . .

. . . since France are already being investigated for over 100 breaches of EU law, whats another one to add to the books ?

@ a couple of people

@Futumsh

Funny you should mention 'Guiding the' Lilly Allen, I've just read in today's Metro (Free newspaper) that Allen has written in her blog that piracy is turning the British Music Industry into "nothing but puppets paid for by Simon Cowell", making it "harder and harder for new acts to emerge".

So a fairly accurate assessment of the British music industry from Allen.

Strange comments though from somebody who initially built her fan base by sharing her music on MySpace.

I don't know if Sarky is worried that Carla's ..... em, music will pirated, but having heard her sing I don't think she has too much to worry about

@Burnblaze

Rimming? did you mean Reaming

Ordonnace pénale are from judges

"It is a procedure that already exists in France. It is not being introduced by this law. It allows the prosecutor to notify you by letter of a proposed sentence"

Not quite so, judges issue ordonnace pénale, they are NOT proposals for penalties, they are "you are guilty of this speeding ticket, I have seen the evidence and accepted it, pay 100 euros or appeal against it" type of claim. Not *prosecutors* in the English sense, judges, not *proposed* penalties *actual ones* with a judge reviewing *evidence* for guilt before hand.

Sarkozy's law takes out the judge part, conviction swapped to allegation, and evidence... well that is not an impartial office, so the evidence will be nothing more than accusation level, not to the standard a judge requires.

So yes, this REALLY breaks some incredible new grounds here, and for such a trivial thing as copyright infringement. Of course all the costs are moved from the copyright industry to the taxpayer. Apparently it's not worth the copyright holder paying those costs, but somehow there is a financial gain if the taxpayer pays those.

It's such a pity about Sarkozy, electors had high hopes, but he lives the life of a playboy millionaire, and the lobbyists that put him there really call the shots. He is also the biggest threat to the stable running of the Euro, he's been the biggest voice on the "oh, just print somemore money, nobody will notice" side of the economic debate.