Re: Fwd: Important Broadband Usage Notice

Actually I found the metronet message to be fine. They're pointing out to 
their customers that the ISP has legal obligations which may include 
monitoring their usage and providing their details to "legal authorities". 
They state that if possible (in the UK it may not be if monitoring is 
happening under the RIPA) they will give customers notice that monitoring may 
be happening.

They're just telling their customers the situation they find themselves in. 
The only bit about this that's at all unclear is at whose request they will 
monitor (they make it quite plain that only "legal authorities" will be 
provided with names and contact details) and whether that includes copyright 
holders themselves or only "legal authorities". If someone were to point out 
this ambiguity to them, I would hope they'd make plain that monitoring will 
only be at the request of "legal authorities" too (since that's my 
understanding of the RIPA anyway, that the ISP can only monitor for the 
purposes of ensuring service and at the request of law enforcement backed up 
by a warrant or appropriate investigatory powers).

The early bit about "check the legal status of material" is just straight 
ass-covering and I can't really find it in myself to find fault with this. 
It's not like they're saying to customers "Don't use file sharing programs, 
they're illegal" the way the RIAA/IFIP/BPI and the MPAA would like them to.




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