France tries three strikes again

Having been told that, actually, throwing people off the internet on the say-so of a bunch of record company executives isn't the way democracies should be treating its public, the Sarkozy government is trying again with a modified version:

Defended before the Senate by Justice Minister Michele Alliot-Marie, the new bill shifts the final decision on cutting off web users from the state agency to the courts.

On the third strike, the agency would report offenders to a judge, who would hand down either an Internet ban, a fine of up to 300,000 euros (415,000 dollars) or a two-year jail sentence, under a fast-track ruling system.

I'm not entirely clear how passing the plug-pulling from a state agency acting at the behest of EMI and friends, to the courts is going to make a difference to the fundamental problem that its unconstitutional to remove people's ability to communicate; perhaps we'll find out if the law ever gets used in anger.