The chief executive of Fox Filmed Entertainment has said the US should join France in cutting off the Internet connection of users who repeatedly download copyright-protected films. CEO Jim Gianopulos said Internet piracy is the single biggest threat to the film industry worldwide, and independent films are the hardest hit. He said Internet service providers […]

The Government's introduction of the Digital Britain bill on Friday last week will “secure the UK's position as a world-leading digital economy”, say ministers. “We need to make sure copyright and the systems around it work in the digital era.” The Government was “likely to get this bill through” they say but others doubt it […]

From Colin Mann in London Future assessment of the UK’s wireless spectrum should take into account whether optimum use is being made of broadcasting spectrum in an age of widespread broadband data, according to Ed Richards, CEO of Ofcom. “We need to continue to ensure that spectrum is put to good use for all our […]

Italy’s Mediaset has filed a complaint with antitrust officials against Sky Italia over its Digital Key that allows Sky Italia subscribers to view free DTT channels. The pay-TV market is dominated by Sky Italia on DTH but Mediaset has been trying to challenge Sky’s position with low-cost pay-TV on DTT. “The distribution by Sky of […]

Rural areas of the UK could gain access to broadband Internet services by using spare television spectrum after Ofcom gave the green light to the technology’s development. The communications regulator published a discussion paper on use of so-called 'white space' spectrum – the buffer radio spectrum between television channels, inviting the industry to push forward […]

While AEPOC praises increasing effectiveness in law enforcement activities in many EU countries to counteract audio-visual piracy, several EU states show little involvement. Eight EU countries have still not yet named a delegate for the EU's High Level Expert group. AEPOC calls on Austria, Belgium, Estonia, Hungary, Lithuania, Malta, the Netherlands and Slovenia to join […]

Scottish ITV franchise owner STV is counter-suing ITV over the VOD rights to ITV shows it airs. STV was already being sued by ITV for £38 million (E42.7m) it claims it's losing by STV not screening its programmes in Scotland. STV's claim is that, though STV acquires rights for linear ITV television shows, ITV Network […]

The government is delaying until after the next election the decision on whether to force the BBC to share part of its £3.6bn (E4bn) licence fee income with producers of independent regional news programming. In publishing the results of a short consultation of the proposals, originally laid out in the Digital Britain white paper in […]

A ruling stating that sporting events may be aired live online without violating copyrights undermines the legal basis for managing broadcasting rights, representatives of the English soccer Premier League have stated in their appeal to the Israeli High Court of Justice. The earlier ruling was handed down by the Tel Aviv District Court. The English […]

The consortium chosen to develop digital terrestrial television (DTT) in Ireland has been told by the The Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) to make progress with its plans as a matter of urgency. It has written to the OneVision consortium, requesting that contracts for DTT be signed within the next couple of weeks. It was […]