Congress to Curb Net Downloads

A bill could be proposed early next year by U.S. Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas, that would allow a copyright holder to disrupt a person's Internet capabilities if he is downloading copyrighted material.

"Representative Smith is concerned with copyright infringement and economic strength," said Smith's press secretary, Brad Bennett.

The proposed bill would primarily target students, whose college campuses have access to high-speed Internet connections and better file-compression programs, which allow for faster downloads.

Bennett said copyright holders would be able to employ technology to combat abuse of file-sharing, potentially aiding the U.S. economy.

"Intellectual property represents a large percentage of American exports, and economic strength and generates billions of dollars a week," he said. "As problems grow worse, you have to confront them."

Bennett said he thinks "an agreement that doesn't limit technology and still protects from copyright infringement" will most likely occur.

Mark Blafkin, director of communications at the Association for Competitive Technology, said, "Intellectual property is a firestorm in Washington."

Digital copyright issues became a hot topic during the administration of former President Clinton.

After the Digital Millennium Copyright Act went into affect in 1998, the Recording Industry Association of America and other entertainment industry groups tightened their grips on pirating.

But UNC officials say that as Internet use increases on campus, the security of protected material will become more of an issue and that regulation must follow suit.

"We have complaints from different companies," said Jeanne Smythe, UNC director for computing policies. "We get at least a complaint a week."

She said the department sends e-mails to students notifying them that they are in violation and asking to remove illicit material and their sharing programs.

After a second offense, a student has to appear in the Honor Court.

If students decide to deny charges, they must submit a written appeal to the copyright holders, who ultimately can opt to sue if they wish to take further action, Smythe said.

But she said most students simply sign a contract stating they have removed the material in question and will terminate illegal downloads. Students then are excused and rarely heard from again, Smythe said.

Though she supports copyright enforcement, Smythe said administrators and legislators must make sure that regulation does not go to far. "I'm not in favor to legalize hackers to cut off a person's network capabilities due to suspicion."

The State & National Editor can be reached at stntdesk@unc.edu.