French CPD will send first warnings to downloaders by late September

The final ">decree necessary to apply the controversial French law against internet piracy (also known as the Hadopi Act) has gone into force last Tuesday, ">reports France's La Tribune. The decree specifies the applicable procedures after receiving a 'request for referral’ from copyright owners about illegal downloading conduct by French internet users. The  CPD - the French Author's Rights Protection Board - expects to send the first warning messages by e-mail in late September.

On the same day that the decree was published, the CPD directly received the first request for referral, confirmed CPD president Mireille Quarta Imbert. The request concerns the illegal downloading of music.

The first step for the CPD is to decide whether the referral request is admissible. To be admissible, each request must specify personal data and information in accordance with another French decree of March 5, 2010. Internet providers have agreed to provide this personal information within 8 days.

If the referral request is admissible, CPD will decide whether it will start a graduated response tactic or penalty proceedings against the illegal downloader. Under the graduated response tactics, the illegal downloader will first receive a warning message, and if necessary a second warning. If he still persists in illegally downloading copyrighted material, the ISP's will be forced to terminate his internet connection.

If the graduated response route is chosen, the CPD is given two months time to send the first warning, says Imbert-Quaretta. Apparently the warning - at least the first - is send by email. Most likely this will be the email address known by the internetprovider or provide by the provider with the start of the internet subscription. It is questionable though whether email satisfactory guarantees the warning message actually reaching and being read by the illegal downloader. A written notice through the mail would provide greater (legal) certainty. Internet providers certainly have possession of the address details of their subscribers, as part of delivering their service. Whether the first email is also accompanied by a written notice and whether the second and third messages are sent through e-mail and/or writing notices too, is not certain.

However, the CPD’s first emails will not be sent until a national awareness campaign is launched, notifying the public about of the dangers of illegal downloading and the new  CPD procedures. And while everyone is at the beach during summer, such a campaign will not reach the public, remarks Quaretta-Imbert. The first warning emails are therefore likely to be sent in late September.

Imbert-Quaretta is confident that the system of graduated response will be effective. To substantiate this claim, Imbert-Quaretta refers to an impact study conducted in the United States. After an initial notification 80% of illegal downloading stops, after a second warning this figure rises to 90%.