The French certainly have a flair for the dramatic, what with the recent kidnapping of bosses and the near-constant succession of transport and farmers’ strikes. Even last night’s « graduated response » vote featured its share of parliamentary theatrics, as the controversial Création et Internet law went down to a shocking 21-15 defeat.
That’s right— »three strikes » has struck out in France. At least for now.
[…]
La Quadrature du Net, which has long opposed the plan, was ecstatic. « This is a formidable victory for all citizens, » said Jérémie Zimmermann, one of the group’s cofounders. « This vote shows that it is still possible to make oneself heard. It is a fantastic example of how to use the Net to fight against those who are trying to control it. Individual liberties, in the end, have not been sacrificed to try to preserve the corporate interests of some obsolete industries. The HADOPI law has been interred earlier than expected. »
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2009/04/french-3-strikes-law-suffers-shocking-defeat.ars