US ISP piracy alert system delayed

The rollout of a piracy alert system in the United States has been pushed back to early next year.

The Copyright Alert System (CAS) would punish users for repeated piracy offenses under a six-step notification process. 

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Users would recieve “educational alerts” first and then progress to throttled internet speeds and possible suspension.

But the scheme was not ready to launch as the Hurricane Sandy interrupted final testing, according to the Center for Copyright Information (CCI) executive director Jill Lesser.

The CAS was expected to go into effect by the end of the year, with Time Warner Cable, Comcast, Verizon and AT&T among the participating ISPs.

The Motion Picture Association of America and the Recording Industry Association of America were also expected to help enforce the system by representing content owners wishing to notify ISPs of copyright misuse.  

In October, Time Warner Cable confirmed with SC it may temporarily halt users' accounts under its version of the alert system.

Subscribers wishing to contest copyright infringement alleged by ISPs will have to pay a US$35 filing fee which would be waived if an independent review body dismisses the complaint, according to CCI.

This article originally appeared at scmagazineus.com