Please join us for a joint Internet Industry Association and NSW Society for Computers and the Law seminar, hosted by IIA Member firm Clayton Utz, on the iiNet and TV Now cases.

Date: Monday 14 May 2012
Time: 5pm for a 5.30 start. Anticipated to run to approximately 7.30pm
Venue: Clayton Utz Level 15, 1 Bligh  Street, Sydney NSW 2000 Australia
RSVP: lynn@iia.net.au

Presenters:

Patrick Fair, IIA Director and Partner at Baker & McKenzie will present as the representative of the IIA, on the policy and Internet industry repercussions.

Jim FitzSimons and Timothy Webb from Clayton Utz will present and answer questions concerning the following:

• does this mean ISPs can ignore copyright  notices, and internet users  can download films from BitTorrent, without fear?  
• what will the rights holders and ISPs do next, if anything, to  prevent  illegal movie downloads?  
• if TV Now is unlawful, how can Foxtel let customers record TV content on its  Foxtel IQ device?  
• is Australia  consistent with the rest of the world or out of step? What legislative  reform could be on the horizon?
• what repercussions does this have for other cloud content  e.g. users  copying music files into  the cloud?
  

Background:

In the last fortnight, there have been two high profile court  decisions regarding online content distribution and copyright infringement  which have a direct impact on copyright owners, the internet industry and  Australian consumers.

Illegal downloading  of movies from the internet is widespread.  In 2008, in landmark action  monitored worldwide, 34 major film and television companies, including Disney,  Warner Bros. and the Seven Network, commenced proceedings against internet  service provider iiNet alleging copyright infringement.  The issue at the  heart of the case was whether an internet service provider is required to take  steps - such as warning notices, internet suspension or termination - when its  users share infringing films using a peer-to-peer file sharing system, such as  BitTorrent.  The matter went all the way to the High Court, with iiNet  ultimately vindicated in Roadshow Films Pty Ltd v iiNet Ltd [2012] HCA  16 (20 April 2012).

In mid 2011 Optus released a new subscription service – "TV Now" –  which enabled a subscriber to record free to air television programmes and  then play them back at the time(s) of the subscriber’s choosing on his or her  compatible Optus mobile device or personal computer.  The AFL and NRL  were displeased, as was Optus’ rival, Telstra, which had earlier signed a deal  worth $153 million with the AFL for the exclusive online broadcast rights to  AFL matches.  After rumblings about the legality of the service, Optus  took the matter to the Federal Court with the aim of having the service  declared legal.  While successful at first instance, the Full Federal  Court held last Friday that Optus' has infringed copyright: National Rugby  League Investments Pty Limited v Singtel Optus Pty Ltd [2012] FCAFC 59 (27  April 2012).