Lescure says internet piracy sanction is necessary

Some form of sanction is indispensable in the fight against internet piracy, but other measures also need to be take, according to Pierre Lescure, the former Canal Plus chief executive charged by the new French government with reporting on the country’s Hadopi anti-piracy regime.

Speaking on the fringes of the Avignon Festival, Lescure said that the principal of a sanction was essential, but had to be accompanied by other measures to encourage the development of legal web-based content offerings.

The current Hadopi law is based on a ‘three strikes’ principal that could see those engaged in illegal filesharing lose their internet connection after three warnings. Lescure, who has criticised this policy in the past, is due to report on the working of the Hadopi law in spring next year.