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The Digital Economy Act

05/05/2017

At a glance

A look at the key provisions of the Digital Economy Act (DEA) that was passed into law on 27th April 2017

The Digital Economy Act (DEA) passed into law on 27 April 2017, a few days before the formal dissolution of parliament ahead of the general election. The DEA is intended to help modernise the UK’s economy in the digital age. During its passage through Parliament, the legislative proposal was described as the “Christmas Tree Bill” due to the breadth of areas it covers, which include copyright, telecoms, internet safety and data sharing.

The DEA’s key provisions are:

  1. The maximum term of imprisonment for online copyright infringement has been extended from 2 years to 10 years, following a recommendation of the IPO.
  2. It is now possible to give notice of registered design rights by marking products with a website address at which the details of the registration are published.
  3. The defence against copyright infringement for wireless broadcasts that are retransmitted by cable has now been repealed. Online providers can no longer rely on this defence to retransmit copyrighted content on the internet.
  4. There is a new obligation for websites hosting pornographic and other adult content to verify the age of visitors. There will be an “age-verification regulator” that will have the power to fine websites up to £250,000 or up to 5% of their turnover. The regulator will also have the power to make ISPs block non-compliant websites.
  5. A broadband universal service obligation (USO) gives consumers the right to request a broadband connection above 10Mbps.
  6. A new Electronic Communications Code sets out the rights and obligations of communication providers in relation to the installation and maintenance of telecom infrastructure.
  7. There are new measures to increase data-sharing in the public sector, including a single gateway where public authorities can share personal data for narrowly-defined reasons. A new code of practice for sharing data between public authorities is currently in draft form. There are also concerns that there are insufficient safeguards for the new data-sharing powers of public authorities as the code of practice setting out safeguards has not been approved yet. There is also doubt as to whether these new powers will comply with the EU General Data Protection Regulation, which comes into force next May.

The new age-verification measures for accessing adult content have raised the most controversy. Some critics have said that these measures lack privacy and security safeguards. Others have said that forcing ISPs to block non-compliant websites amounts to censorship of otherwise legal content.

There are also concerns that there are insufficient safeguards for the new data-sharing powers of public authorities as the code of practice setting out safeguards has not been approved yet. There is also doubt as to whether these new powers will comply with the EU General Data Protection Regulation, which comes into force next May.

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