ISP Will Protect File-Sharers From Music Industry Disconnection Threat
Written by enigmax on April 04, 2008After getting an “unbelievably rude letter” from the British Phonographic Industry which demanded that ISPs disconnect file-sharers from the internet, the UK’s third largest ISP, Talk Talk, is in fighting mood. “Talk Talk rejects music industry threats and refuses to become internet police” says their statement.
The BPI has been writing to all the major ISPs just lately, on the subject of unauthorized file-sharing. The BPI wants ISPs to work with them to disconnect persistent file-sharers from the internet. Trouble is, like most music industry bodies, the BPI think that muscle flexing and posturing will get them the results they demand. Not so.
When Rory Cellan-Jones of the BBC went to see Charles Dunstone, CEO of Talk Talk owners Carphone Warehouse, he didn’t find a happy man. Speaking of the BPI, Dunstone said: “They’ve sent us the most unbelievably rude letter” . True to form, the demands from the BPI carried a threat - comply in 14 days or face legal action, something which has not been well received by one of the UK’s richest men. “Talk Talk rejects music industry threats and refuses to become internet police” said a statement.
Dunstone says he won’t tell his customers what they can and can’t do and believes that the BPI is attempting to force him to pay for their failure to adapt to the digital revolution. “The music industry has consistently failed to adapt to changes in technology and now seeks to foist their problems on someone else,” said Dunstone. “Rather than threatening us, the BPI’s time would be better spent facing up to the reality of our times and adapting its business model accordingly.”
Of course, the BPI aren’t just going to leave it at that. Hitting back with a statement of its own it said: “Talk Talk either seek to misrepresent our position or just doesn’t get it.”
The BPI says that it doesn’t want Talk Talk to become the internet police, rather it wants the ISP to act on evidence it supplies about file-sharers. “It’s not true that we are threatening them or asking them to become the internet police” said the BPI. “In fact, what we are looking for is a progressive partnership that will ultimately create new services for their customers. But clearly they must begin to address problems of illegal downloading on their networks.”
Dunstone says he will fight any attempts to force him to cut his customers off from the internet. “I cannot foresee any circumstances in which we would voluntarily disconnect a customer’s account on the basis of a third party alleging a wrongdoing.” he said.
Labeling them as “unreasonable and unworkable”, Talk Talk has responded in writing to the BPI, rejecting their proposals in full.
So, well done to Charles Dunstone - this should further increase your profile and boost Talk Talk’s popularity somewhat. Now, if you could please stop throttling P2P traffic, that would be wonderful. Get in touch - you can break the news here on TorrentFreak…
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64 Responses
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listen to my ska band.
http://www.mininova.org/tor/1286550
anyway, yeah I hope the internet stays as free as it is now, any less freedom and it would immediately begin to suck. seems like it’s headed in that direction, too.
TORRENTFREAK SUCKS
it worries me that the British Phonographic Industry could merge with the British Pornographic Industry.
We are on Talk talk, and frustratingly experience throttling of bittorrent activity.
However this is GREAT news, and about time that we have some British voice in a world the media likes us to think is controlle solely by out-of-reach european politicians and multinationals (and their puppet the BPI)
Well done Talk Talk. Now PLEASE stop the throttling!
I think im going to send a package with a friendly hello and a bag of dog poop.
It will smell realy nice after shipping..
Excellent. Ex-cel-lent.(gleefully rubbing hands together a la Mr. Burns)
Look how surprised BPI sounds when they get the news about talk talk.
These record companies are so used to getting their way by bullying and threatening people, that when someone actually stands up to them, they don’t even know what to do.
Go talk talk! (but seriously, reconsider your throttling policy.)
@cheeseeater:
Not only that, but they additionally missed that you can refer to a company with both a singular and plural verb (”Talk Talk seeks…” or “Talk Talk seek…”). It depends on whether you wish to place the emphasis on the company as a whole or the individual members.
With your masterful grasp of the English language you must be a real hit with the ladies.
The BPI is in no position to issue terrorist demands, yet this fact sadly eludes them.
Making a threat like “comply or face legal action” isn’t very intimidating when THEY CAN’T FUCKING MAKE AN ISP FACE ANY LEGAL ACTION FOR SAYING ‘NO’.
These little MAFIAA parasites have devoted so much of their fleeting brainpower to just sitting around and sucking their own cocks(figuratively, inbetween literally doing lines of blow), that they’ve long since taken permanent a vacation from reality.
Why doesn’t the BPI just announce that unless filesharing ends forever in the next 10 minutes, everybody on the entire fucking planet is gonna get sued for six trillion dollars, their first born child, and a kidney? Come on, Geoff Taylor… There’s no way it could make you look like any *more* of a clown. Go for it!
Ya motherfucker balls out his shit is clankin fuck the BPI.
I love the comments on this site, they make me smile and even laugh on occasion.
Such a shame that the ISP is a bag of $hite… every 1 i knows has had sum issue being a customer with them…
Probz one o the reason they dont want to get into it… thier support Sux for “normal” usage !
we need more people like you in this country my like-minded friend.
[quote comment="330892"]“The BPI says that it doesn’t want Talk Talk to become the internet police, rather it wants the ISP to act on evidence it supplies about file-sharers.”
LOL yeah, because acting on evidence and enforcing laws isn’t what the police do, right? Talk about a contradictory statement…
BPI must attract the dumbest of the dumb employees. Usually this type of stupidity only comes from gov’t institutions.
The funny thing is, they are causing sales losses with dumb shit like this. The herd sees this type of aggressive corporate action against consumers and it’s the last time they ever spend a penny on product (me included.)
In short, fuck the recording industry, they’re a bunch of right-wing crackpot authoritarians, so don’t give them a fucking penny.[/quote]
[quote comment="331019"]
if my isp causes me trouble i will be off to talk talk to download download![/quote]
Enjoy your strangled connection. 5KB/s anyone?
I’m not to sure if anyone else has noticed this but.. “Talk Talk” is one of the very worst ISP names i have every heard of it kinda makes me think the company is all talk and therefore this post means nothing if they had a better name (even something as mundane as the owners last name) they would have the customers/money to upgrade there servers and have no need to throttle anyone
nice1
[quote comment="331121"][quote comment="330974"][quote comment="330962"]“Talk Talk either seek to misrepresent our position or just doesn’t get it.”
Excuse? What you try to saying?
It seems the BPI is too busy suing people to learn English.
That sentence makes no sense and should read ‘Talk Talk either seeks to misrepresent our position or just doesn’t get it.’Not that that statement makes anything clear…[/quote]
this bothered me too
“When Rory Cellan-Jones of the BBC went to see Charles Dunstone, CEO of Talk Talk owners Carphone Warehouse, he didn’t find a happy man. “They’ve sent us the most unbelievably rude letter” said Dunstone of the BPI.”
I though that sentence was talking about the Talk Talk CEO. The BPI guy said that the rude letter was sent to them?
This needs to be proofread.[/quote]
You must be from the US because you did not read it correctly. The sentence said:
“Speaking of the BPI, Dunstone said: ‘They’ve sent us the most believably rude letter.’”
It was Dunstone that said he’d received the rude letter from the BPI. The author of the article has written it at a level that you have yet to attain, so get back to school and learn the English language.[/quote]
Read my quote jackass. The author has since edited his. Nice try though.
BPI are trying to be the next RIAA. They had a chance to actually make an effort to adapt their business model without having a bad reputation and they blew it.
Talk Talk are not a good ISP at all, they’re your average corporate drivel in a similar league to Tiscali, BT, Sky and so on, and will shaft you with a smile when it suits their interests.
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