A Senate committee on Thursday is scheduled to take up a controversial copyright bill that would allow the Department of Justice to bring civil complaints against copyright infringers and allow for greater enforcement within the federal government.
The Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights Act of 2008 was introduced in July by Democratic Sen. Patrick Leahy of Vermont.
It would allow DOJ, which is currently only allowed to bring criminal charges against copyright infringers, to file civil cases against alleged offenders.
Washington-based interest group Public Knowledge expressed concern Wednesday that the bill takes an “unbalanced approach."
Allowing for civil complaints “would be an enormous gift of federal resources to large copyright owners with no demonstration that the copyright owners are having difficulties enforcing their own rights," Public Knowledge wrote in a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee that was signed by 11 other interest groups.
“The recording industry has threatened or filed over 30,000 lawsuits against individual consumers," the letter continued. “Movie and television producers, software publishers, music publishers, and print publishers all have their own enforcement programs. There is absolutely no reason for the federal government to assume this private enforcement role."
The Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights Act of 2008 was introduced in July by Democratic Sen. Patrick Leahy of Vermont.
It would allow DOJ, which is currently only allowed to bring criminal charges against copyright infringers, to file civil cases against alleged offenders.
Washington-based interest group Public Knowledge expressed concern Wednesday that the bill takes an “unbalanced approach."
Allowing for civil complaints “would be an enormous gift of federal resources to large copyright owners with no demonstration that the copyright owners are having difficulties enforcing their own rights," Public Knowledge wrote in a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee that was signed by 11 other interest groups.
“The recording industry has threatened or filed over 30,000 lawsuits against individual consumers," the letter continued. “Movie and television producers, software publishers, music publishers, and print publishers all have their own enforcement programs. There is absolutely no reason for the federal government to assume this private enforcement role."
