File Sharer Convicted In Sweden

For the first time, a file sharer has been convicted in Sweden, a country long seen as soft on digital piracy. Indeed, the country only this past July passed a law against downloading copyrighted material.

The conviction stems from a case prior to passage of the downloading law, when Andreas Bawer uploaded a movie to the Internet. Although the court found Bawer not guilty of downloading the film because the new law had not been put into place, it found him guilty of violating copyright law for distributing the film online. In its ruling, the court said, “Illegal material can in this way be spread quickly and reach many people, which can lead to heavy economic losses for the copyright owners.” Because Bawer did not try to profit from his actions, the court decided to fine him rather than sentence him to prison. Bawer’s attorney said his client had not yet decided whether he would appeal the verdict. Henrik Ponten of the Swedish Anti-piracy Agency praised the ruling, saying that Sweden has “taken the first step toward a functioning copyright law.”

BBC, 25 October 2005