Piracy, File Sharing … And Legal Fig Leaves

Abstract

Peer to Peer (P2P) platforms have been very effective in allowing the transmissionof large, bandwidth-intensive files (such as music and video) over the internet. Many such platformsare open source, and have been established by various operators as systems for the unauthoriseddistribution of copyright protected content.In addition to civil (and often criminal) liability faced bypersons establishing P2P platforms for the unlawful distribution of content, an end-user whodownloads copyright protected content from an unauthorised site risks civil action by the copyrightowner for breach of copyright by making an unauthorised copy of the file.The paper will look at thesignificant growth in P2P file sharing and its role as a medium for copyright piracy. The paper willexamine: how P2P file sharing facilitates internet piracy; the effect of case law; legislative changeswhich have taken place in an attempt to deter illegal distribution of copyright material through P2Pplatforms.; the effectiveness of strategies adopted by rights holders in an attempt to reduceunauthorised file sharing and ; protection measures available both for copyright owners seeking toavoid having their work illegally copied , and also third parties (such as ISPs and content hosts) whomay unknowingly become involved in the distribution of such material