MOSCOW, May 29 (RAPSI) - Russia's Culture Ministry has proposed introducing sanctions against users of file-sharing networks for posting unauthorized content online, Kommersant daily reported Wednesday.
The Ministry proposed the establishment of a state Intellectual Property register. Each entry in the register should include the owner's name and contact details, and information on the copyright item.
In accordance with the bill, holders of Intellectual Property rights would be able to notify Internet Service Providers (ISP) that a file-sharing network user has infringed upon its rights, and to report the perpetrator's IP address, Kommersant wrote citing the Culture-Ministry sponsored legislation. The ISP would be required to notify the user within 24 hours of the need to remove the disputed content.
If the user fails to remove the content within 24 hours, the ISP can delete or block access to it within the following 12 hours.
In cases where an ISP fails to notify the user, or where it fails to act pending a user's inaction, it would face the same administrative liability as website owners: a 5,000 ruble ($160) fine for individuals, 50,000 rubles ($1,590) for officials or sole business proprietors, and 1 million rubles ($31,870) for companies.
Once certain adjustments are made, the final edition of the bill, will be considered on June 3 at a panel of the Economic Development Ministry, the Education and Science Ministry, and the bill's working group. After that, the bill will be sent to the Justice Ministry and the Government for approval, Kommersant wrote.