Modest good news as Government makes modest copyright backdown

From the BBC comes news of progress in improving the controversial Digital Economy Bill, specifically around copyright infringement:

Ministers offer concessions on copyright changes

Ministers have given a concession over what critics claimed were “draconian” powers which would enable them to crack down on online copyright infringement.

A clause in the Digital Economy Bill would have allowed ministers to amend existing laws on online piracy without the need for further legislation.

Google and Facebook were among firms to complain about the measure, saying it would hamper digital innovation…

Section 17 of the bill, which has attracted the most anger, would give ministers “reserve powers” to draft fresh laws to tackle net-based copyright infringement without needing parliamentary approval.

Ministers argued that such powers were needed to support copyright laws against future, more technically advanced forms of piracy.

But Conservative and Lib Dem peers had both threatened to vote against the measure when it is considered next in the House of Lords.

In response, the government has tabled several amendments.

These would mean existing copyright laws could only be amended by statute if they was a “significant” new threat of infringement and would provide for more parliamentary scrutiny before this happened.

There’s still an awful lot wrong with the Digital Economy Bill, but cutting back some of the powers it would have given to Government ministers to rerwite the law as they wish is a welcome change.