Digital Economy Act
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| Long title | An Act to make provision about the functions of the Office of Communications; to make provision about the online infringement of copyright and about penalties for infringement of copyright and performers’ rights; to make provision about internet domain registries; to make provision about the functions of the Channel Four Television Corporation; to make provision about the regulation of television and radio services; to make provision about the regulation of the use of the electromagnetic spectrum; to amend the Video Recordings Act 1984; to make provision about public lending right in relation to electronic publications; and for connected purposes. |
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| Citation | 2010 c 24 |
| Introduced by | Lord Mandelson |
| Territorial extent | England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 8 April 2010 |
| Commencement |
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| Repealed | s.17 and 18 repealed 2011 |
| Other legislation | |
| Relates to | Communications Act 2003, Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, Video Recordings Act 1984 |
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Status: Current legislation
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| [s.3 through 16 ("The Code") have never come into force History of passage through Parliament] | |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| Text of the Digital Economy Act 2010 as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, from legislation.gov.uk | |
The Digital Economy Act 2010 (c. 24) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The act addresses media policy issues related to digital media, including copyright infringement, Internet domain names, Channel 4 media content, local radio and video games. Introduced to Parliament by Lord Mandelson on 20 November 2009, it received Royal Assent on 8 April 2010. It came into force two months later, with some exceptions: several sections - 5, 6, 7, 15, 16(1)and 30 to 32 - came into force immediately, whilst others required a Statutory Instrument before they would come into force. However some provisions have never come into force since the required statutory instruments were never passed by Parliament and considered to be "shelved" by 2014, and other sections were repealed.
Sections 3 to 16 contained copyright infringement provisions, which were controversial. These provisions established a "code" to be created which would define a system of procedures covering notifications to Internet Service Providers to notify their customers when an allegation was made of downloading copyright-infringing content online, subscriber appeals, conditions under which subscribers could be identified to third parties, and conditions for disconnecting persistent infringers. The objective was to provide evidence that copyright holders could use in court action against subscribers who repeatedly infringed. A second element of the provisions comprises the ‘technical measures’, where a sanction would be applied directly via a subscriber's Internet provider.
Under DEA Section 3 the allegations were to be transmitted to the Internet Service Providers (ISPs) by the copyright holders. The ISPs would then be obliged to transmit notifications to their subscribers, informing them of the allegation. DEA Section 4 mandated the ISPs to keep a list of repeat offenders (a "copyright infringement list" ) who had reached a pre-determined threshold in terms of the number of infringements committed, and the data should be anonymous. The aim is that copyright holders could later seek a court order to identify subscribers against whom they want to take action.
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