Paschal Donohoe (Fine Gael)

I thank the Minister for taking this Adjournment matter. It relates to Government thinking on dealing with the issue of illegal file sharing across the Internet. There was some publicity about that in recent weeks in regard to a freedom of information request to the Government through an organisation called Digital Rights Ireland. It was looking to establish Government policy on how it would work with Internet service providers in Ireland to stop files being shared illegally across the Internet.

In raising this issue on the Adjournment I seek to do three things, the first of which is to establish Government policy and thinking on the area because until now I have been unable to get a read on the most recent thinking in terms of the way this area will be dealt with. How we respond to this is becoming increasingly important because there have been a number of High Court rulings in this area to which the Government will have to respond and deliver a policy that will deal with this area.

Second, I have an interest in Irish companies that work on the Internet. These are legitimate large Irish companies that would work in digital media, digital gaming, digital art, animation and so on which depend on the Internet to deliver a legitimate business that is a symbol of the smart economy we are all committed to delivering. Some of those companies have flagged a number of issues in terms of where they see Government policy going that could seriously affect their ability to operate successfully out of Ireland.

Two points have been made to me, the first of which is the need to recognise and emphasise that not all file sharing across the Internet is illegal. Much of the file sharing is important for digital games, on-line enterprises and marketing activity to work. It is completely legal and the kind of enterprise and activity our country is trying to promote as being a hub for Europe and the world.

The second point is a more technical one that I am trying to understand further but it is worth putting on the record. It appears that many of the protocols and technologies that would be involved in illegal file sharing are also the ones used to run legal file sharing and the approach the Government might decide to take may be unable to recognise the difference.

That leads me to the third point I want to make. As this issue was raised with me and I talked to some experts in the area, the message I got back from large employers here, who are strategic to what we are looking to do with our smart economy is that a policy that did not consult them could threaten the jobs and expertise we are building up in areas like cloud computing, digital media and attracting companies like Facebook, which has its European headquarters in Dublin, Google, Bling and so on which depend on many of these technologies for their business and operations in Ireland.

This issue is now being dealt with across Europe and the world and it is being treated much more seriously than was the case in the past. While I am presenting this as a threat to our country because inevitably we respond to bad news we hear and raise them in these Houses, the important flip side is that as other countries make a decision about the way they will respond to this issue, there is the possibility they will use a blunt instrument to deal with it.

I urge the Minister, the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform and the Department of Communications, Energy and the Marine to consult broadly with the businesses and stakeholders in Ireland to ensure we come up with a policy that deals comprehensively and seriously with the issue of illegal file sharing, which includes everything from the sharing of songs illegally to child pornography, which is a very serious issue, but in a way that recognises that a great deal of commercial activity we are trying to attract uses the same technology. We have already had much success in that regard.

If we were to do engage in a consultation process, we could formulate a policy that might be more nuanced and effective than those of many other competitive countries which are looking to get the same technologies. That would add to our ability to grow these industries domestically through indigenous talent and would also be another string in our bow in terms of attracting such companies to our country, which we all want. Our country has had a great deal of success in this area up to now.

I realise the Minister of State will reply on behalf of another Department. I understand the reason for that but this is a serious issue and if we all engage in it, it might ward off danger and present an opportunity to us as well. I look forward to the Minister of State's response and hope to have an opportunity to pursue this issue in the Seanad.