The Red Flag Act 2010 (#DEBill and the Locomotive Acts)

The Tory and Labour parties colluded in forcing through a piece of draft legislation today - the Digital Economy Bill - which is one of the most barefaced examples of Olde Media trying to protect it's position via legislative muscle.

No-one (rational) was ever suggesting that there should not be a Digital Economy Bill and a debate - everyone was welcoming it - but most people wanted to debate it fully and get all views sorted, as well as iron out its inconsistencies, errors and incomplete areas.

The fact that these two major UK political parties forced it through (despite its incompleteness, erroneous areas, clear public resistance, and strong arguments by those in the parties who know something about this area) implies both are in effect in thrall to these vested interests - and, one therefore wonders, who else's vested interest are they (jointly and severally) in thrall to?

In general this is an apolitical Tech Strategy blog, but one of the things we predicted in our work on Web TV is that the Olde Media would use legislative means to curb the growth of the New, and that the role of a government is to balance these interests to the greater good of the country's best interest.

They failed, miserably. But they failed in full possession of their faculties. And both failed, ie whoever is in government next time will fail to uphold the interests of the future in deference to the past.

We did this in the past, in 1865 Britain passed laws that meant that New Technology (powered vehicles) had to have a man walk in front of them with a Red Flag:

The Locomotive Acts (including the The Locomotives on Highways Act 1861, The Locomotive Act 1865 or Red Flag Act and the Highways and Locomotives (Amendment) Act 1878) were a series of onerous measures introduced by the British parliament to control the use of mechanically propelled vehicles on British public highways during the latter part of the 19th century.

.....

These new Locomotives, some up to 9 feet (2.7 m) wide and 14 tons, could also allegedly damage the highway while they were being propelled at "high speeds" of up to 10 miles per hour (16 km/h).[1] However, there is evidence that the steam carriages' better brakes (which did not lock and drag), their wide tyres, and the absence of horses' hooves striking the road allowed them to cause less damage to the roads than horse-drawn carriages.

It was a scam then to protect the incumbents, its a scam now, and a pox on both houses that passed it.

Update - I wrote this last night, and already this morning one of the major UK ISPs is publically looking at ignoring the bill. Let the Digital Defiance begin!

Update to my update - it appears they are bravely defying it until the next Parliament comes in after the election to enforce it. Heroic resistance, what!