Music Biz Uses Net Neutrality to Equate P2P with Child Porn – Again

Once again uses tactic of equating urgent need to fight child porn with P2P. Trouble is that law enforcement already aggressively pursues the former, and it’s really only copyright holder groups, unwilling to adapt to a digital marketplace, that see an urgency in establishing an ISP-level system of fighting online copyright infringement.

Earlier this month Verizon and Google teamed up to develop a “joint policy proposal for an open Internet,” i.e. “net neutrality.” One of the main tenets of their proposal is that ISPs would not be allowed to prevent customers from accessing legal content or using legal applications and services.

“In providing broadband Internet access service, a provider would be prohibited from engaging in undue discrimination against any lawful Internet content, application, or service in a manner that causes meaningful harm to competition or to users,” reads the proposal. “Prioritization of Internet traffic would be presumed inconsistent with the non-discrimination standard, but the presumption could be rebutted.”

The RIAA quickly responded by saying that it was pleased that the two “recognize that lawful and unlawful content should be treated differently,” but then only uses two examples of the latter: copyright infringement and child pornography. It was by no accident that it used only these two examples, for by including child porn alongside P2P in the conversation it makes it pretty much impossible to suggest that ISPs should not fight illegal activity on their network.

Now some 13 music industry heavyweights are getting on the P2P equals child porn bandwagon. In a letter submitted to Google Chairman and CEO, Eric Schmidt, the music groups, representing songwriters, managers, publishers, record labels, indie artists, music licensers and more, asked Google for details of the proposal as it “may relate to content protection and ensuring that the distinction between lawful and unlawful activity is part of any ultimate solution.”

“The music community we represent believes it is vital that any Internet policy initiative permit and encourage ISPs and other intermediaries to take measures to deter unlawful activity such as copyright infringement and child pornography,” reads the letter. “The principle of distinguishing lawful from unlawful activity has become a firmly established tenet of broadband policy – articulated clearly by FCC Chairs Powell, Martin and Genachowski, leading Members of Congress from both parties, and industry executives. It is also contained in the standard user  policies of many legitimate businesses that operate online.”

The RIAA, which after ending the practice of suing individual file-sharers back in 2008 in favor of ISP-level cooperation, has been waiting impatiently for the chance to convince ISPs to become copyright cops, be it voluntarily or through legislation. The music industry wants to make sure that Net neutrality doesn’t inhibit their ability to do so, and it’s equating P2P with child porn to help convince people of the seriousness of the crime.

The RIAA’s international cousin the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry’s (IFPI) has been trying to equate P2P with child porn for years. As far back as 2007 the IFPI has said that “technology similar to that used to block access to child pornography could be used to block access to websites that facilitate infringing file-sharing of copyrighted music.”

Earlier this year the IFPI took that sentiment to the next level, going so far as to exclaim that “child pornography is great…because politicians understand child pornography.”

“By playing that card,” IFPI lawyer Johan Schlüter told an audience gathered at an anti-P2P conference in Sweden, “we can get them to act, and start blocking sites. And once they have done that, we can get them to start blocking file-sharing sites.”

The music industry knows the drill. Equating P2P with child porn is the quickest way to make people sympathetic to their cause and get them to act accordingly.

In the letter the music industry groups also reiterate their same, tired argument that they can’t innovate and “create the next generation of music” until we have “Internet policies and procedures that respect intellectual property.” Apparently, the only solution to piracy they’ve managed to come up with after all this years is one where it forces people to become customers at the risk of them and their entire households being removed from the digital marketplace a la a “three-strikes” graduated response regime.

“The current legal and regulatory regime is not working for America’s creators,” continues the letter. “Our businesses are being undermined, as are the dreams and careers of songwriters, artists, musicians, studio technicians, and other professionals. That’s why we look forward to working with you, other stakeholders, the FCC and the Congress to make the distinction between lawful and unlawful relevant in the marketplace so that the Internet fulfills its promise for consumers, subscribers, providers, creators and business.”

The only people who care about making additional distinctions between lawful and unlawful content are copyright holders like the music industry. Law enforcement already aggressively pursues those who share child pornography. In fact, it was one of the reasons Time Warner gave a few months ago for not being able to process more than 28 IP address lookups per month as part of the US Copyright Group’s mass BitTorrent lawsuit.