The Italian Job: Part Due

Filed in archive International , Legal on February 14, 2007

We previously reported the ruling "Italian Court Rules Personal Downloading Legal." Er, not so fast. Our good friends at IFPI, the international companion to RIAA, say the case was based on an old copyright law. I'm honored that my little blog is on somebody's watchlist other than the TSA and that Alex Jacob took time to directly contact me. Current Italian law gives the recording industry full control over your music, digital copies, home PC, and first born child.

Their response:

UNAUTHORISED UPLOADING AND DOWNLOADING ARE ILLEGAL IN ITALY - STATEMENT OF CLARIFICATION BY IFPI

2nd February 2007 - Unauthorised uploading and downloading of copyrighted music remains illegal in Italy, contrary to inaccurate press reporting of a recent court judgment in Rome.

The country's foremost criminal court (Corte di Cassazione) earlier this month acquitted two former students on the grounds that it was not a crime to download computer files from a computer (ftp) network if there was no financial gain.

The judgment has been widely misinterpreted as indicating that unauthorised uploading and downloading on file-sharing networks are now legal in Italy.

In fact, however, the court ruling was made on a case brought in 1999 under copyright legislation that has since been updated. The law changed when Italy implemented the European Copyright Directive and the Urbani Decree in 2004.

Under the revised copyright law that is in force today, unauthorised uploading and downloading - contrary to the inaccurate press reports - are illegal. Unauthorised downloading is subject to a fine, while unauthorised uploading is a criminal offence.

Contact for information:

Alex Jacob, Adrian Strain, IFPI
Representing the Recording Industry Worldwide
+ 44 207 878 7935

Alex Jacob
Communications Team
IFPI

Tel: +44 (0)20 7878 7940
Mob: +44 (0)792 0238 655
Fax: +44 (0)20 7878 7950

IFPI
54 Regent Street
London W1B 5RE