In article <18029.40210.45583.17990@world.std.com>, Barry Shein <bzs@world.std.com> writes
It'd be a lot easier if we could come up with separate terms for common law common carrier versis CA1934 telecommunications common carrier.
What you are looking for is probably a US equivalent of the European Union's "Mere Conduit" law. It's a relatively new (doesn't have historical baggage) law, and has the advantage of in effect being negotiated with telcos and ISPs during the drafting. Additionally there are sensible definitions for the liability of intermediaries in the circumstances of caching and hosting. The caching clause was particularly important from an operational point of view, because the threat was that a different approach (as initially promoted by rightsholders) would have either made caches an illegal beach of copyright, or mandated that cache owners get a licence from all copyright holders (perhaps through a central collecting agency set up for the purpose). Luckily[1], sense prevailed. http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/e-commerce/index_en.htm Topical to the current discussion, and also of crucial operational importance, a subsequent proposal in the UK for sysadmins to be individually licensed in order to obtain immunity[2] from reporting illegal material found on their systems, was lobbied into a more general amnesty for that kind of activity. [1] Actually, no luck involved at all, just sustained lobbying via a network of EU-based trade associations. [2] A bit like seeing a gun in the street and on handing it into the police being prosecuted for possession of an unlicenced firearm; strictly true (if having it in your hand is the definition of possession), but not in the public interest. -- Roland Perry Internet Policy Agency