The Free and Open Web Is dead, Long Live Commerce

Written by Jorrit Thursday, 12 January 2012 11:15

Yesterday the Dutch courts ruled that access to The Pirate Bay should be blocked by the Internet Service Providers XS4All and Ziggo.  The courts are usually there to protect our freedoms, but this time something has gone wrong.  Article 7 of the Dutch constitution and this European legislation clearly state that we as Dutch and European citizens have the right to unrestricted access to the internet. So why has the court ruled in favor of Stichting Brein and ordered ISPs to block the site? Can it be because Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Norway, China, Sweden and United Kingdom have previously done so?  Maybe it's because the music industry, represented by stichting Brien, has a large commercial drive?

Reference
Court ruling in Dutch available here:
http://www.rechtspraak.nl/Organisatie/Rechtbanken/Den-Haag/Nieuws/Pages/Ziggo-en-XS4ALL-moeten-toegang-tot-The-Pirate-Bay-blokkeren.aspx

Translation of the Court ruling in English available here:
http://translate.google.com/translate?sl=nl&tl=en&js=n&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&layout=2&eotf=1&u=http://www.rechtspraak.nl/Organisatie/Rechtbanken/Den-Haag/Nieuws/Pages/Ziggo-en-XS4ALL-moeten-toegang-tot-The-Pirate-Bay-blokkeren.aspx&act=url

Tweakers news post on ruling in Dutch available here:
http://tweakers.net/nieuws/79266/ziggo-en-xs4all-moeten-the-pirate-bay-blokkeren.html

Translation of the Tweakers post in English available here:
http://translate.google.com/translate?sl=nl&tl=en&js=n&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&layout=2&eotf=1&u=http%3A%2F%2Ftweakers.net%2Fnieuws%2F79266%2Fziggo-en-xs4all-moeten-the-pirate-bay-blokkeren.html&act=url