Federal government quietly changes copyright document

17.10.2011
The Attorney's General Department (AGD) has made unannounced changes to its latest discussion paper on copyright, removing a proposal for a streamlined process for copyright owners to access user details from ISPs for legal reasons

The , entitled Revising the Scope of the Copyright 'Safe Harbour Scheme' & the Process of Seeking ISP Subscriber Details in Copyright Infringement Matters, has been to just Revising the Scope of the Copyright 'Safe Harbour Scheme' with any information around the proposed streamlined process removed.

The department has removed a paragraph from the paper's introduction which reads, "In addition, the Government is also seeking comments on whether there is a need to establish a more streamlined process for copyright owners to obtain subscriber details from Internet Service Providers (ISPs) for legal proceedings."

It also eliminated the entire portion of the document relating to the proposal the introduced a streamlined process, which was subtitled, 'Streamlining the Process of Seeking ISP Subscriber Details in Copyright Infringement Matters'.

"There may be advantages in considering whether it is desirable to adopt a more streamlined procedure for copyright owners to identify ISP subscribers who engage in online copyright infringement," the original document reads.

"The Government considers that any streamlined process should require judicial oversight and take into account the legal obligations of ISPs under both the Privacy Act and the Telecommunications Act.