Movie distributor Dutch Filmworks today announced it wants to 'fine' Dutch internet pirates that have illegally downloaded the movie 'The Hitman's Bodyguard'. The fine, actually a proposal to settle, has been set at €150 ($177).
The company will work together with German Tecxpio to collect IP addresses of internet users who illegally downloaded the movie. The company will then request the pirate's contact information from their ISP. If the ISP cooperates, offenders will receive a proposal to settle. When the pirate pays €150, the company won't take any further legal action.
Dutch Filmworks considers its current initiative a pilot to see how it works out. The company stresses that the €150 is preliminary and can change over time, depending on the costs of legal action and incurred damages.
The company is legally required to warn users upfront from which movies downloads are monitored and IP addresses collected. Collecting IP addresses of The Hitman's Bodyguard has started today. The Dutch privacy watchdogs permits Dutch Filmworks to collect IP addresses of movie pirates.
So far it's unclear whether the Dutch ISPs will actually provide contact information from their customers to Dutch Filmworks. If not, the company could take the ISPs to court.
