Later in 2008 the Eastern High Court upheld the earlier ruling but Telenor, with the support of other ISPs, said they would continue to fight. In April 2009 a Danish appeals body accepted a petition from the ISP to take the case to the Supreme Court.

“We are pleased that we now have the opportunity to find out whether it is Internet Service Providers’ responsibility to ensure the closure of a website,” noted Telenor’s regulatory chief Nicholai Kramer Pfeiffer. Representatives from the music industry believed a decision in their favor was required.

“The principle is extremely important in this case. If the Supreme Court unblocks The Pirate Bay, it means that people can abuse the Danish artists’ music again,” said Martin Arnoldsen, Executive Director of the Danish Musicians’ Union. “Many people may think that musicians are living a life with lots of money, but this is not the reality.”

The Supreme Court hearing began last week on May 20th, with Telenor making its final attempt to have the earlier decision overruled and therefore unblocking The Pirate Bay.

“The central legal argument of IFPI in this case is a statement in Danish copyright law: Any copying due to exceptions in copyright is illegal if the ‘original’ being copied is an illegal copy,” Ole Husgaard of the Danish Pirate Party told TorrentFreak last night.

“Because the ISP makes temporary copies of small fragments of the copyrighted work as IP packets pass their routers, the ISP violates copyright if one of their customers downloads an illegal copy. But this requirement of a ‘legal original’ is not allowed in the EU Infosoc directive in the case of ‘a transmission in a network between third parties by an intermediary’ (Article 5.1(a)). So here our local law violates EU law,” he explained.

Husgaard told TorrentFreak that the top civil servant in the Danish government responsible for copyright law at the time Infosoc was implemented in local law was Peter Schønning.

“Today he is no longer a civil servant. Now he is employed by IFPI, and is running the legal proceedings to get the Pirate Bay blocked for IFPI,” says Husgaard.

Today the Supreme Court announced its decision and the IFPI came out on top. Telenor – and by extension other ISPs – must continue to DNS-block The Pirate Bay so that Danish subscribers cannot access the site.

“With the Supreme Court upholding an ISP ban against providing customer access to The Pirate Bay it is clearly necessary to have legislative changes,” say the Pirate Party in a response to the ruling.

“Our copyright law should be addressed, so it is no longer in breach of EU law. And the Procedure Code should be amended so the rules on preliminary injunction can no longer be misused by, for example, IFPI to achieve a better position than they are entitled.”

This is a breaking news story and will be updated

Source: TorrentFreak, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing and anonymous VPN services.

Telenor refused to comply and was taken to court. In November 2009 the verdict was handed down – the courts decided that the ISP had no obligation to block the world’s most infamous torrent site.

The IFPI wasn’t about to give in so easily, with CEO Marte Thorsby insisting the court had ruled incorrectly. Music performing rights outfit, TONO, confirmed the case would go to an appeal.

In early February the Borgarting Court of Appeal announced that the appeal had been rejected as there was no basis under Norwegian law for the claim. IFPI and TONO said they would consider their options, i.e make a decision as to whether or not they would take the case to the Supreme Court.

Yesterday, in a surprise announcement – it’s not like the entertainment industries to give in so easily – IFPI and TONO said they will not take their appeal to Norway’s highest court.

“We wanted to get a legal clarification on whether under Norwegian law it is possible to order ISPs to block access to The Pirate Bay,” said TONO in a statement. “Now we have two clear decisions that there is no legal authority under Norwegian law for such blocking requirements.”

Following the November ruling, TONO said that it was possible that the authorities had not implemented the EU Copyright Directive properly in 2005, a line they continue to stand by.

“We interpret both [court] decisions as suggesting that questions have been raised about whether the EU Copyright Directive was adequately implemented in Norwegian law,” TONO added.

Marte Thorsby of the IFPI said that continuing with legal action would be a waste of time and money, and joined TONO in their calls for clearer legislation.

“The Court of Appeal wrote in its ruling that the limits of complicit liability are unclear, and we expect that the ongoing revision of the Copyright Act will close this legal ‘hole’,” said Thorsby.

Source: TorrentFreak, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing and anonymous VPN services.

Their demands were simple enough – stop your customers from accessing The Pirate Bay voluntarily or we will make you do it by force.

Telenor boss Ragnar Kårhus refused to comply and the entertainment groups made good on their promise and took the ISP to court. In November the verdict was handed down. Although initially things looked promising for the studios, in the end it didn’t go well.

The Asker and Bærum District Court clearly stated that Telenor was contributing to copyright infringement by providing infrastructure which allowed customers to access The Pirate Bay, and that it was also passively contributing due to its refusal to act when its services were used for illicit file-sharing.

But this wasn’t enough. Since these contributory acts were not directed at specific customers or their actions, or the actions of the Pirate Bay itself, the court ruled that Telenor operated consistently, treating both legal and illegal use of their network in the same manner. This meant that Telenor acted within the law and the court refused to force the ISP to block The Pirate Bay.

Marte Thorsby of the IFPI insisted that Telenor was acting unlawfully and believing that the court had ruled incorrectly, Cato Power from music performing rights outfit, TONO, said they would take the case to appeal.

The Borgarting Court of Appeal has just announced it has rejected their appeal, as there is no basis under Norwegian law for the claim.

After the November ruling, Power said that it was possible that the Norwegian authorities had not implemented the EU Copyright Directive properly in 2005. This rejection by the Court of Appeal appears to confirm his fears.

“The Court of Appeal’s decision confirms what we have previously stated, that the licensees in Norway are right to address this area,” he said in a statement.

Marte Thorsby for the IFPI said there is a need for clarification.

“The Court of Appeal wrote in its ruling that the limits for contributory responsibility are unclear and that the Culture Ministry must clarify this when they go through the copyright law again,” she said in a statement.

“This is, in other words, is a ‘no man’s land’ in current law, and that means people are free to facilitate illegal activities in the Norwegian [ISP] network,” she added.

The Ministry of Culture has already announced a review of the Copyright Act and there are suggestions that this current gray area will be clarified then.

In the meantime, although they insist they are currently examining their options, it is expected that the studios will take the case to the Supreme Court.

Source: TorrentFreak, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing and anonymous VPN services.

Telenor boss Ragnar Kårhus refused to comply and IFPI rolled out the lawyers and early November saw the delivery of the verdict in the case.

The Asker and Bærum District Court ruled that Telenor was indeed a contributor to infringement as it provides the infrastructure to access TPB, and that it was also a passive contributor due to the fact that it refused to act when its service was used in connection with illicit file-sharing.

However, since these contributory acts were not directed at specific customers or what they did on The Pirate Bay, or indeed the actions of the Pirate Bay itself, the court decided that Telenor operates in the same manner whether its systems are used for legal or illegal uses.

In a nutshell, although Telenor was “guilty” of contributory infringement, their actions were not unlawful. Furthermore, when making its decision the district court looked in depth at the possible repercussions if it decided that Telenor, and by extension other ISPs, had to police the Internet.

The court therefore refused to sanction the blocking of The Pirate Bay.

Of course, with this apparent ambiguity the copyright holders aren’t going to accept the court’s ruling, and have been making statements this week detailing their plans.

“We believe the ruling is incorrect and, therefore, we have appealed the decision in the High Court,” said Cato Power from music performing rights outfit, TONO.

“If it’s the case that the Norwegian authorities have not implemented the EU Copyright Directive properly, as the district court said, this is serious. For us this is a principled case that it is important to clarify law in a higher authority,” he added.

Commenting for the IFPI, Marte Thorsby insists that Telenor is acting unlawfully by providing customer access to The Pirate Bay.

“The court is crystal clear that Telenor contributes physically to make The Pirate Bay available for their customers,” she said in a statement.

“We believe, contrary to the court, that this participation is in conflict with Norwegian law. We see that ISPs in several European countries have been made responsible for providing access to illegal services, and believe that this also is the situation in Norway.”

Source: TorrentFreak, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing and anonymous VPN services.

Without any legal basis, Telenor refused to comply.

“This would be the same as demanding that the postal service should open all letters, and decide which ones should be delivered,” said Telenor boss Ragnar Kårhus.

The verdict in the case was due to be delivered October 30th, but was delayed until today.

IFPI has lost the case and Telenor will not have to block The Pirate Bay.

The court ruled that Telenor is not contributing to any infringements of copyright law when its subscribers use The Pirate Bay, and therefore there is no legal basis for forcing the ISP to block access to the site.

“Obviously we are pleased that the District Court has arrived at this conclusion,” said Telenor’s Ragnar Kårhus in a statement.

“At the same time it is important for us to emphasize that this case is not about being in favor of or opposed to copyright, but about whether or not it is reasonable to saddle Internet service providers with a censorship role in respect of content on the Internet,” he added.

Kårhus went on to say that the most important way for IFPI and other rights holders to maintain healthy revenue streams, is to develop business models and services that render the use of sites like The Pirate Bay less attractive to Internet users.

In making its decision, the court also had to examine the repercussions if it ruled that Telenor and other ISPs had to block access to certain websites. This, it said, is usually the responsibility of the authorities and handing this task to private companies would be “unnatural”.

This is a breaking news story and will be updated.

Source: TorrentFreak, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing and anonymous VPN services.

Without any legal basis it would be unacceptable for the ISP to comply, so it was left with no option but to refuse.

“This would be the same as demanding that the postal service should open all letters, and decide which ones should be delivered,” said Telenor’s Ragnar Kårhus.

IFPI, rarely one to make hollow threats, especially where lawsuits are concerned, made good on its word and sued Telenor.

The then-Pirate Bay spokesman Peter Sunde felt that the lawsuit was an indication that IFPI was unhappy with the competition.

“They have had a monopoly on distribution and we’re breaking that monopoly, and in turn they sue people that allow access to our distribution method,” Sunde told TorrentFreak at the time.

The trial began on October 12th in Norway and for its part, Telenor argued that Norwegian law protects Internet service providers from liability for the actions of their subscribers. IFPI feels that the site is illegal and should therefore be blocked.

The verdict in the case was due to be delivered today, but there will be a delay.

According to Telenor’s Information Manager Atle Lessum, the judge has announced that due to illness the result will now be handed down next week.

The Pirate Bay is no stranger to blockades. From September 1st, an out of court settlement between Irish ISP Eircom and IFPI came into effect, which blocked customer access to the ‘Bay. Similar blocks are pending in Italy and The Netherlands.

Source: TorrentFreak, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing and anonymous VPN services.

IFPI and representatives from the movie industry argue that Telenor is willingly infringing copyright by allowing its customers to access the prominent BitTorrent tracker, but Telenor disagrees with this assessment. In a public announcement today Telenor explains why.

“If Telenor were considered complicit in any illegal activities online, we would have to block access to websites and customers on any suspicion of illegal activity. Telenor would then act as some sort of private police or private censorship authority, which would be very worrisome in light of important issues such as freedom of speech,” Telenor writes.

Blocking websites upon request from the entertainment industry is “unacceptable” according to Telenor. The ISP agrees that piracy is a problem and they don’t support customers who engage in these activities, but they are refusing to censor the Internet without a court order.

“Instead of demanding that Internet providers censor the Internet and monitor the content that’s transferred, Telenor believes that the best way to decrease illegal file sharing is to put more effort into making legally downloadable content available.”

The entertainment industries should find ways to monetize legal content in a way that satisfies both the copyright holders and customer. Blocking access to websites instead would “violate principles which constitute important prerequisites for any democracy”.

It is good to see that an ISP like Telenor is willing to go to court to protect their rights and those of their customers, instead of taking the easy route and giving to the wishes of the copyright lobby. Telenor rightfully emphasizes that the entertainment industry should focus on the source of the problem by developing legal alternatives that satisfy the need of their customers, a position also held by EU Commissioner Viviane Reding.

Even if IFPI wins in court, blocking The Pirate Bay is not going to be very effective. There are several ways to get around it and thousands of other BitTorrent sites. On top of that, the new owners of the site plan to get rid of all the copyrighted content indexed by the site.

Source: TorrentFreak, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing and anonymous VPN services.

The Danish case is not over yet as it’s currently under appeal at the Supreme Court. However, IFPI is already widening its territory in an attempt to score a similar victory in other countries.

This March, IFPI set course for Norway and gave the country’s largest Internet provider ‘Telenor’ an ultimatum. IFPI demanded that the ISP block access to The Pirate Bay within 14 days – or get taken to court.

“This would be the same as demanding that the postal service should open all letters, and decide which ones should be delivered,” was the response of Telenor’s Ragnar Kårhus at the time, while he stressed that they follow the law and not the demands of the music industry.

Telenor thus refused to give into the demands of the music industry, and invited IFPI to file a lawsuit if they deem it necessary. True to form and together with several movie studios, IFPI has now filed a lawsuit against Telenor.

Sveinung Golimo, a representative for Norwegian film makers said: “We want to highlight this problem. We do not wish to censor the Internet but we do want the possibility to make a living on what we create.” Apparently, the music and movie industries can’t make a living when Norwegians have access to The Pirate Bay.

The Pirate Bay team has always spoken out against IFPI’s witch-hunt, and provided its users with several tutorials on how to circumvent the blockade. Going even further, earlier this year Pirate Bay’s Peter Sunde told TorrentFreak that they are seriously considering suing the IFPI for unfair competition.

“They have had a monopoly on distribution and we’re breaking that monopoly, and in turn they sue people that allow access to our distribution method,” Sunde told us.

Source: TorrentFreak, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing and anonymous VPN services.

Ragnar Kårhus of Telenor said that they follow the law, and not the demands of the music industry. He doesn’t see what law would require them to block sites. “This would be the same as demanding that the postal service should open all letters, and decide which ones should be delivered,” he says.

Previously, a Danish judge ruled last year that Tele2 had to block its users from accessing The Pirate Bay. IFPI argued that Tele2 was assisting in mass copyright infringement, and that access to the site therefore had to be blocked. IFPI is now using this decision in an attempt to force ISPs in other countries to do the same.

However, Kårhus points out that there is a huge difference between the situation in Norway and Denmark. There is no court ruling in Norway, he argued, and a letter from the rights holders is not sufficient. “It is important that these kind of decisions should be made after handling in the judicial system – namely the police and a court of law,” Kårhus said.

Interestingly, the Norwegian Minister of Education said recently that the music industry should embrace the Internet instead of fighting it. “All previous technology advances have led to fears that the older format would die. But TV did not kill radio, the Web did not kill the book, and the download is not going to kill music,” he said.

It is uncertain whether IFPI will follow though with their threats and go after Telenor in court. It wouldn’t be the first time that legal threats have been used as a mechanism for applying pressure.

Source: TorrentFreak, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing and anonymous VPN services.