UK Pub Reportedly Fined For Illegal Wi-Fi Download 102
superglaze and several other readers noted a piece up on ZDNet.co.uk reporting that last summer a pub in the UK was fined £8,000 after a customer downloaded copyrighted material on its Wi-Fi connection. According to the article, whose source was the Wi-Fi hotspot provider, it was a civil action and the pub was not identified because its owner had not given permission to release the details. Techdirt is skeptical as to whether or not the reported fine happened, given the sketchiness surrounding the details. If true, the ruling seems baffling to UK legal experts, according to ZDNet: "Internet law professor Lilian Edwards, of Sheffield Law School, told ZDNet that companies that operate a public Wi-Fi hotspot should 'not be responsible in theory' for users' illegal downloads under 'existing substantive copyright law.'" In a follow-up article, Prof. Edwards cautions that such hotspot operators should "watch out for the pile of copyright infringement warnings coming your way."
Re:Simply unacceptable. (Score:5, Funny)
If this report is true, someone who was mugged by a guy at night who was using the government's streetlights to commit the crime should sue the government. Turnabout's fair play.
Re:Small Hotspot providers have no idea of risk (Score:3, Funny)
Unfortunately the RIAA already has the patent on that method.
Re:Simply unacceptable. (Score:4, Funny)
I think we should sue the gun makers for all the gang related crime. That would be a powerful lobby to have with us :)
Re:Simply unacceptable. (Score:4, Funny)
Re:Right, anybody got a coffee vending machine? (Score:4, Funny)
You can expect Starbucks to be suing you for a patent infringement soon, I think. It's people like you who steal other people's ideas, and cause them to go bankrupt. ;^)
Re:Rumor propagation (Score:2, Funny)
For the first time, I'm with the RIAA on this one. Everton lost. I'm suing the pub for the trauma they inflicted on me and the beer was crap too.