Thank You Kevin Martin and Justine Bateman

Wed, 04/23/2008 - 18:59

Patrick Ross

Yesterday we at the Copyright Alliance praised FCC Chairman Kevin Martin in a statement for stating what cannot be said often enough; that it is appropriate to make distinctions between legal and infringing content online. Here are Martin's remarks before the Senate Commerce Committee, discussing enforcement of the FCC's policy principles on network management adopted in 2005:

"First, the Commission should consider whether the network management practices are intended to distinguish between legal and illegal activity.  The Commission's network principles only recognize and protect user's access to legal content.  The sharing of illegal content, such as child pornography or content that does not have the appropriate copyright, is not protected by our principles." 

In other words, no ISP should be forced to allow illegal works to travel its network if it wishes to stop them.

We did not put out a statement -- but perhaps we should have -- praising the testimony of Justine Bateman, best known for her role as Mallory Keaton in "Family Ties," but an actress who more recently has appeared in "Arrested Development," "Men in Trees" and now "Desperate Housewives." Currently promoting an upcoming online video service FM78.TV, Ms. Bateman had some thoughts to share with the committee on the role the Internet can play in providing a creative voice. But she also emphasized the importance of copyright protection:

"[P]iracy is obviously a major problem around the world and of course the Internet has exacerbated the problem of illegal downloading. I applaud the work of the MPAA, the Copyright Alliance and others to insure creators are protected.”

The boldface in the quote above is unashamably mine. Even if she didn't shout our name at the hearing, however, we love being mentioned and having our work acknowledged by someone who is not only a star of traditional media but now a pioneer in experimental media as well. Thanks for the support, Ms. Bateman!

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