EU in Piracy Crackdown

The European Parliament has passed an anti-piracy law, covering everything from handbags to music downloads.

The final vote on the EU Intellectual Property Rights Enforcement Directive took place in the European Parliament on 9 March. The directive was passed by 330 votes to 151.

The law was drawn up to target professional pirates, criminals and counterfeiters who make copies of goods such as football shirts or CDs. During the debates, the directive was widened to cover any infringement of intellectual property. The directive allows companies to raid homes, seize property and ask courts to freeze bank accounts to protect trademarks or intellectual property they believe are being abused or stolen.

[Cynical mode] The European law was shepherded through the European Parliament by MEP Janelly Fourtou, wife of Jean-Rene Fourtou who is boss of media giant Vivendi Universal. [/Cynical mode]

Good news though... ... late amendments added to the law limited who intellectual property owners could take action against and what penalties they could apply. One amendment said action should not be taken against consumers who download music "in good faith" for their own use.

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