The latest troubling development in copyright enforcement is a bill recently introduced in the Congress by Howard Berman (D-CA). This bill would allow copyright holders to disable computers used to illegally trade copyrighted material, such as music and movies. Copyright holders would be exempt from computer hacking laws, and allowed to disable P2P networks allegedly used in illegal file sharing by various technical means currently prohibited by existing computer crime laws. It would grant copyright holders legal carte blanche to ping, probe, scan, disrupt, attack, and crack remote computer systems or infrastructures to ensure no copyright infringements are taking place. Not only that, but under the bill, the copyright holder is not liable for any damages beyond $50 resulting from their on-line copyright enforcement. (For the full text of the proposed legislation, please click here.)

Of course, a "copyright holder" can include just about anyone, from Hollywood's entertainment cartels to owners of Weblogs and to students posting essays on the Web. But what's good for the goose may not be good for the gander. The day after the bill's introduction in the US House, Jack Valenti, chairman of the Motion Picture Association, was quoted saying that "there are aspects of the bill we believe need changing as it moves through the legislative process." As a recent Register article notes, the sweeping powers and immunities of the Berman bill were most likely intended to apply only to large entertainment entities, not every copyright holder on the Net.


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