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Digital Economy Bill [HL]

My Lords, Amendment 74A would ensure that only those copyright owners who were involved in genuine and substantive copyright business in the UK could benefit from the provisions of this Bill. One of the Government’s stated purposes for this legislation is to assist growth and investment in jobs in the UK by owners of UK copyright works—that is, increasing the contribution to the UK’s economy by the UK’s creative industries. The use of the legislation to further other interests will not contribute to or achieve this, but it will increase the numbers of notifications that UK internet service providers will be required to handle, so raising those providers’ costs. It will also stimulate the proliferation of scams likely to cause harm and distress to UK consumers and citizens and it will create a hub for online infringement claims to be brought in the UK akin to the so-called defamation tourism claims made in the UK, which the Government recognise should be tackled and deterred. The purpose behind this amendment is to rule out claims from companies that take up UK rights for the sole purpose of pursuing claims against alleged infringers of the copyright material involved. A number of such companies operate in the UK. Members on these Benches and, I believe, other noble Lords have received details of hardship cases of families being pursued by some of these companies and law firms acting for them. Their mode of operation is to pursue alleged infringers, having first obtained their details from the ISPs used by the consumers. They are able to obtain the details by means of what are known as Norwich Pharmacal orders, whereby a court order requires a respondent—for example, an ISP—to disclose certain documents or information to the applicant, or the company making the claim. A Norwich Pharmacal order should be granted only where necessary in the interests of justice. Once the order has required the disclosure of the name and address of the alleged infringer, the claimant writes to them demanding upwards of £500 or threatening to sue. As I am sure many noble Lords will attest, this is becoming big business and does nothing to protect the proper and legitimate rights of copyright owners in the UK. This amendment is designed to prevent that. I beg to move.