EU ready to screw up European Internet with Telcoms Package

Glyn sez, "The EU's Telecoms Package is back for its second reading. The French are attempting to push through their 'three strikes and you're out' approach again, the UK are attempting to get rid of net neutrality and get rid of peoples right to privacy. The ITRE/IMCO committee are meeting on the 31 March 2009 to dicuss these and other alarming amendments. The Open Rights Group have more details:"

One of the most controversial issues is that of the three-strikes strongly and continuously pushed by France in the EU Council. Although most of the dispositions introducing the graduate response system were rejected in first reading of the Telecom Package, there are still some alarming ones persisting. France is trying hard to get rid of Amendment 138 which seeks to protect users' rights against the three-strikes sanctions and which, until now, has stopped the EU from applying the three-strikes policy. Also, some new amendments reintroduce the notion of lawful content, which will impose the obligation on ISPs to monitor content going through their networks.

The UK government is pushing for the "wikipedia amendments" (so-called because one of them has been created by cutting and pasting a text out of the wikipedia) in order to allow ISPs to make limited content offers. The UK amendments eliminate the text that gives users rights to access and distribute content, services and applications, replacing it with a text that says "there should be transparency of conditions under which services are provided, including information on the conditions to and/or use of applications and services, and of any traffic management policies ."...

Also a very dangerous amendment to the ePrivacy directive is introduced by the UK, allowing the telecommunications industry to collect a potentially unlimited amount of users' sensitive and confidential communications data including telephone and e-mail contacts, geographic position of mobile phones and websites visited on the Internet.

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Telecom Package in second reading - dangerous amendments? (Thanks, Glyn!)

• [Nur]

  #1

  You would think so. There’s a whole lot wrong with it but it does really quite good work at its job which is letting the whole of Europe operate as close to a single economic area as possible (free market, uh oh). Unfortunately that involves having to listen to the other 26 countries now and again.

  The problem is that it gets a horrible press in the UK. There’s an entire political movement with a number of political parties just for the purpose of saying how bad it is. They often tread the line between nationalism and utterly racist and can give the whole anti-EU school of thought a bad name.

• [spazzm]

  Want to buy a house in Poland?

  Hell no. Why would anyone want to live in Poland?

  A car in Italy?

  Can’t afford to. Unless you’re talking a second-hand Fiat Panda.

  Want to download the same track at the same price in Italy, Spain, France, UK, Germany?

  Already doing that at the great, great price of “free”. Besides, I don’t think having uniform prices was a goal in establishing the EU.

  Use an airport without having your dignity destroyed?

  Now we’re talking. As long as you steer clear of the soul-sucking atrocity that is Heathrow, you’ll be treated with dignity and respect. If you fly/drive/take the train within the EU you won’t even be asked for ID at the borders. Britain, for some reason, still thinks the French are about to invade them and insist on all sorts of silly ‘security’ measures.
  In addition to that, if you’re a citizen of a country that’s been an EU member for more than 7 (IIRC) years, you can move to anywhere in the EU and start working. No immigration papers, no visa.
  I don’t think most Americans understand what a great relief this is for Europeans.

  So that they can operate in a manner that maximises their profit and minimises any labour movement restrictions.

  I’m sure there’s a lot of truth in that, but the 7-year limit was established by Unions and against the expressed wishes of ‘big business’ so that the rich, western European countries would not be swamped by cheap labour from the poor, eastern European countries.

• [bobhughes]

  this is a reason i’m glad to be an american. i’m kindof amazed that we are still the freest country in cyberspace after 8 years of hardliner authoritarianism

• [spazzm]

  Glad you are getting music for free – bit torrent much? Try it legally though, for example via your phone…

  It’s called ShoutCast, and I assure you that it’s completely legal.

• [Jerril]

  #3: Free-est country in cyberspace? wot? Land of the OMGITMIGHTHAVEPORNINIT? Since when?

• [Patrick Dodds]

  @2, NUR.
  Mmmm, the EU, what a wonderful institution. Want to buy a house in Poland? A car in Italy? Want to download the same track at the same price in Italy, Spain, France, UK, Germany? Use an airport without having your dignity destroyed? Uh uh matey, that ain’t going to happen. Why not? Because it doesn’t suit The Man. Christ, anyone would think it was meant to benefit citizens the way you are talking. It isn’t, of course, it is for big business. So that they can operate in a manner that maximises their profit and minimises any labour movement restrictions.

• [OneofBrunenG]

  Perhaps it’s time, Internets unite against those repressive politicos. In France, as in New Zeland, there is now a “NET BLACK OUT” campaign going on against the Hadopi laws. You can inform yourself (in english or french) at:

  http://www.laquadrature.net/en

  We can help each others… Internet is a world global thing after all. And it’s not good for anyone when some country loose freedom or democratic rights. Maybe i am dreaming of true international net users campaigns. Well, sometimes dreams happen.

• [Anonymous]

  you know,
  the EU sounds like it’s horrible

• [Anonymous]

  Why not just come right out and ban the internet, that seems to be the point.

• [Patrick Dodds]

  “Hell no. Why would anyone want to live in Poland?”

  There is that.

  Buying a car in Italy?

  “Can’t afford to. Unless you’re talking a second-hand Fiat Panda.”

  Thing is, you wouldn’t be allowed, not unless you were a resident of the country – why?

  Glad you are getting music for free – bit torrent much? Try it legally though, for example via your phone – on mine, ThiefMobile charge $10,000 per gig (2008 rates)- I swear, I’m not making that up. Mmm, thanks EU. And as for music downloads being licensed across Europe, Apple have long complained about the different number of licences they have to negotiate to sell stuff on iTunes – again, why? Who does this benefit?

  “As long as you steer clear of the soul-sucking atrocity that is Heathrow, you’ll be treated with dignity and respect.”

  Well, I’m glad this is your experience. Mine is different – try Gatwick where the same shit as goes down at Heathrow goes on, or even the tiny Galway where, amongst other things, belt and shoe removal was the norm last time I used it (albeit that they don’t go in for the water and toothpaste confiscation, at least not yet).

• [Patrick Dodds]

  Oh, and sure, uniform price for physical goods may not have been the goal of Europe, but for downloads, which have no physical presence and may be on a server anywhere in the world – why the price difference?

• [spazzm]

  That does it, I’m voting for the Pirate party in the upcoming EU elections.

  I’m not surprised the Brits are trying this stuff, but the French?
  We’ll have to endure three more years of Sarko idiocy – sacre bleu!

• [spazzm]

  Oh, and sure, uniform price for physical goods may not have been the goal of Europe, but for downloads, which have no physical presence and may be on a server anywhere in the world – why the price difference?

  Who cares? But if you want to decide that the EU is evil because it costs more for rich Londoners than for poor Pollacks to download the latest Titney Swears track, go right ahead.

  Well, I’m glad this is your experience. Mine is different – try Gatwick where the same shit as goes down at Heathrow goes on, or even the tiny Galway where, amongst other things, belt and shoe removal was the norm last time I used it.

  Gatwick is in the UK. Galway is in Ireland, which is like the UK’s theocratic little brother.
  I’m not at all surprised that they treat humans like cattle there.
  But your point is fair. I should have been more specific:
  In most of the EU outside the British Isles, you will be treated with dignity and respect. Once in the British Isles, you are not.
  This may be a horrible over-generalisation, based on a very small sample of airports inside and outside of the EU, but still.

  Anyways, nowhere in the world I’ve been treated worse in an airport than what I have been in the USA. Norway is pretty crap, too, but at least you can get a decent whale steak.