Spain to form interministerial committee to fight piracy

Spanish courts have had a tradition not to view file sharing over p2p networks as an unlawful act. This practice has been reinforced by instructions from the attorney general not to criminalise file sharing.

Recently however, the highest court in Spain has questioned these instructions and has requested they be reconsidered.

Zeropaid.com states that the Spanish government is planning a move that would out the country firmly on an anti-piracy track.

There is talk of a interministerial committee to be established, in which representatives of the Justice, Culture, Interior and Industry cooperate to limit piracy.

The committee will replace the Intersectoral Committee against Piracy, headed by the Culture ministry. This committee focused mainly on raising public awareness on copyright issues. The issue of taking (technical) measures to reduce piracy were delegated to ISPs and rights holders, who were invited to cooperate in designing policies.

Earlier this year, talks between rights holders and ISPs stranded. The new committee will now work on developing a comprehensive policy in fighting piracy.