The Register has a longish story on the plight of an Australian teenager who is being prosecuted for linking to a site that may have been involved in copyright infringement, something he started doing when he was 12 and updated until he was 15. Apparently his home was raided by federal police when he was 16 and he is now 18 and the case is going ahead. Alex Malik says:
"This case is significant for a number of reasons:
It is the first time that a minor has been prosecuted in Australia by the Federal Government for linking to a website alleged to be involved in copyright infringement
It is the first time that a minor in Australia has been prosecuted by the Federal Government under the “aiding and abetting” provisions of the Copyright Act
It is the first time that a minor has been subject to any kind of enforcement proceedings in Australia, in relation to internet based copyright infringement. This reminds me of the infamous US case against Brianna LaHara (http://www.theregister.co.uk/2003/09/10/riaa_keeps_12yearold_quiet/), who was only 12 when she was sued by the RIAA in the US for copyright infringement."
He also says that time shifting ie recording TV programs on a VCR for later viewing is not technically permitted under Australian copyright law. That's something I was not previously aware of.
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