Google Fiber funnels disputed piracy fines straight to subscribers

Over the past few years, copyright holders have settled on a new strategy for pursuing alleged pirates. Instead of adopting the RIAA’s tactic of suing grandparents, copyright holders allowed a single corporation, dubbed Rightscorp, to offer settlements on their behalf. Rightscorp’s business model is simple: It attempts to identify individuals who have downloaded infringing material, then offers to settle the claim for
a modest amount per infringing work — the typical amount quoted is $20 per infringement.

Rightscorp has already been hauled into court for its payment scheme and Ars Technica notes that the number of ISPs that actually cooperate with the firm across the US is steady at around 15%. Unfortunately, it looks as though Google Fiber is one of those cooperating ISPs — gigabit subscribers to the service have been receiving notifications directly from Google upon complaint from Rightscorp. Techdirt has the scoop. 

Google defends its actions by noting that it hasn’t shared information directly with the complaining firm. The difference between what Google is doing and the actions of other ISPs is that Google is sending the notifications in the first place. There’s real doubt over whether or not Rightscorp’s actions are legal. Similar business models that relied on pressing suit against users based on IP addresses, from Righthaven to Prenda Law, have imploded in recent years, with multiple judges holding that IP addresses cannot be used to reliably identify individuals, particularly when multiple people in a household or area have connected through a single router via wireless. Like these earlier efforts, Rightscorp relies on so-called “fishing expeditions.” It contacts an ISP with a list of IP addresses and requests subscriber contact information.

Google appears to be trying to split the difference here. On the one hand, it’s not turning information directly over to Rightscorp. On the other, it’s still warning customers that it may disconnect them on repeated violations, even though such violations have not been proven and multiple other ISPs refuse to comply with such shakedown demands.

Given that Google isn’t conducting its own investigation into the truthfulness of Rightscorp infringement claims and has no apparent plan to turn over information to the company, threatening to disconnect users if they continue allegedly infringing is a patent attempt to play both ends against the middle. Still, it’s an unnecessary headache for end users, particularly those who may find themselves falsely accused. How do you clear threats against you if there’s no investigation and no avenue for protest?