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Software piracy laws in Ireland?

  • 14-03-2006 11:28am
    #1
    DOLEMAN
    Closed Accounts Posts: 850 ✭✭✭


    Hello,

    Does anyone know what the software piracy laws are in Ireland?

    Also, is there a threshold like the drug laws - for example, having software worth €10 gets a fine, but software worth €10,000 get a prison sentence...?

    Any pointers appreciated.

    Cheers!


Comments

  • #2
    Stephen
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 18,484 ✭✭✭✭Stephen


    All i know is Ireland has some of the toughest intellectual property/copyright law in Europe... be careful.


  • #3
    liamo
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,193 ✭✭✭liamo


    I don't know if there are recommended sentencing guidelines - I imagine that the judge would make his decision based on the nature and scale of the offence. I do know that there is provision for both financial and/or custodial penalties.

    Regards,

    Liam


  • #4
    maidhc
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 7,722 ✭✭✭maidhc


    It is governed largely by the Copyright and Related Rights Act 2000
    <http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/ZZA28Y2000.html&gt;

    Most of the Act relates to private rights that a copyright owner may have. E.g. if you have a pirated copy of MS Word on your computer MS is permitted to sue you for damages, but not necessarily bring in the Gardaí. Although the actual value of the software may have a part to play, the damages awarded will be at the discretion of the court (s128), thus a student using a pirated verison of Autocad may escape very lightly while a firm of achitects may be penalised severely.

    If you run a plant pressing fake CDs, or using the pirated software in a businessed (e.g. like the architects) then s140 can be brought into play, which provides for quite substantial criminal remedies.

    There are also a number of reasonably liberal provisions allowing people to use software in ways not approved of by the copyright owner (although to read boards sometimes you would think it is the coprtight owners actually make the laws...). See s79 - 83 and chapter 6 generally.

    The legislation has been amended a couple of times to transpose various EU directives, but since the Act was largely written with these in mind the changes are largely minor. One dissappointing change however was s374 which originally allowed people to circumvent DRM where it interfered with their rights under the act. You can now apply to the High Court instead of running DeCSS.... how very useful.


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