• by Wendy Davis , Staff Writer @wendyndavis, June 7, 2011

Entertainment industry executives have made no secret of their hope that broadband providers will deploy "three-strikes" policies and disconnect users who repeatedly infringe copyright. So far, however, Internet service providers in the U.S. have been slow to implement such systems -- and for good reason.

First, and most obviously, ISPs have little to gain financially by cutting off paying subscribers. Additionally, questions of copyright infringement aren't often clear-cut, given that the same activity that a media company might view as copyright infringement, a user might consider fair use. ISPs have enough to do without adjudicating these disputes.

Now, the Special Rapporteur to the United Nations has weighed in with a report condemning three-strikes laws as a potential human rights violation. "The right to freedom of opinion and expression is as much a fundamental right on its own accord as it is an 'enabler' of other rights, including economic, social and cultural rights, such as the right to education and the right to take part in cultural life and to enjoy the benefits of scientific progress and its applications, as well as civil and political rights, such as the rights to freedom of association and assembly," the report states.

While the report endorses the idea of restricting some types of online material -- including some material that appears to be protected by U.S. law, like "hate speech" -- it also distinguishes between blocking content and completely disconnecting users. The report comes out squarely against the latter. "The Special Rapporteur is deeply concerned by discussions regarding a centralized 'on/off' control over Internet traffic. In addition, he is alarmed by proposals to disconnect users from Internet access if they violate intellectual property rights," the paper states.

The report goes on to say that disconnecting users for allegedly infringing copyright is "disproportionate" to the offense and, therefore, violates international civil rights law. The Special Rapporteur isn't the only one to come to that conclusion. Three years ago the European Parliament also condemned three-strikes laws for similar reasons.