UK court moves closer to blocking The Pirate Bay
updated 11:40 pm EST, Mon February 20, 2012
Site accused of violating copyright law
The UK High Court has reportedly ruled that file sharing site The Pirate Bay has violated copyright laws. In a judgement that was presented on Monday, Justice Arnold concluded that "both users and the operators" of the site infringe on copyrights in the UK.
"In my judgment, the operators of [The Pirate Bay] do authorise its users' infringing acts of copying and communication to the public," Justice Arnold wrote. "They go far beyond merely enabling or assisting."
The ruling opens the door for the government to move to block access to the site for users based in the UK. Music labels argue that The Pirate Bay ignores takedown requests for copyrighted music, a stance the judge agrees with.
A final decision regarding blocking access to the site is scheduled for June. [via The Guardian]
