German Court Rules In Favor of ISP's

P2P.net has reported that ISPs in Germany can't be forced to provide customer data to Big Music, "even when illegal copying is suspected”, which many are now calling a major victory in the war for piracy...The German newspaper Heise Online also reports that ISP's cannot be compelled to reveal the identities of subscribers alleged to have traded copyrighted songs. Basically, the Higher Regional Court in Hamburg ruled that current German law protects the privacy of ISP customers even though previously, a lower court had ordered the identities of the operators of an FTP server offering free downloads to be turned over - but the recent ruling from the Higher Regional Court overturned this decision - so the alleged file sharers will remain anonymous for the time being. The Register adds that, "experts believe that the setback for the record industry is only temporary as legislators in Germany are drafting a new Telemedia Act, granting the recording industry more freedom in obtaining data from internet service providers." However, until then (if it even passes), this landmark decision could obviously lead to increased file-sharing in Germany without fear of repercussions...

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--German ISPs Win P2P Case