Hon Simon Power
Minister of Commerce
12 July 2011 Media Statement
Cabinet approves notice fee for copyright regime
Commerce Minister Simon Power today announced that internet service providers will be able to charge rights holders up
to $25 for processing an allegation of copyright infringement.
The decision was made by Cabinet when considering technical regulations to underpin the Copyright (Infringing File
Sharing) Amendment Act 2011, which comes into effect on 1 September.
“The Government decided that a fee of up to $25 fee was an appropriate compromise between what rights holders and the
ISPs wanted.
"However, we will review that six months after the Act comes into effect to make sure it's at the right level.
“For rights holders, the fee level ensures the regime is a more cost-effective enforcement measure than what is
currently available through the courts, and allows them to pursue a reasonable number of alleged copyright infringements
to educate internet users.
“For ISPs, the fee level prevents them from being inundated with alleged copyright breaches to the point they find it
difficult to comply with the regime, and allows them to recover a reasonable proportion of their costs.”
The regulations will also prescribe:
• The information that rights holders need to provide to ISPs in order to trigger the infringement notice process.
• The form and content of infringement notices sent to internet account holders by their ISP, including a requirement
that notices must include information on the operation of the Act and general copyright information.
• The method by which the Copyright Tribunal determines the amount of an award (up to $15,000) for copyright
infringement arising from file sharing.
• That the application fee to take a claim to the Copyright Tribunal is $200.
The Cabinet paper on the regulations can be found here.
Background:
The Copyright (Infringing File Sharing) Amendment Act 2011 establishes a three-notice regime to deter illegal file
sharing. It involves ISPs sending warning notices to their customers informing them they may have infringed copyright.
It also extends the jurisdiction of the Copyright Tribunal so it provides an efficient, low-cost process to hear illegal
file-sharing claims.
The Act also includes a power for a district court to suspend an internet account for up to six months, in appropriate
circumstances. However, this element of the legislation will not be brought into force unless the Minister of Commerce
considers that the notice process and the remedies by the Copyright Tribunal are ineffective. This will enable the
Government to work with stakeholders to monitor and review the situation and determine when a further deterrent may be
needed. It's expected the issue will be reviewed in two years’ time, coinciding with the five-year review of the digital
copyright amendments that were passed in 2008.
ENDS