Today, the Court of Appeals of The Hague rendered its judgment in the appeal of internet service providers XS4ALL and Ziggo against anti-piracy organization BREIN. In first instance, the District Court allowed Brein’s claims: an IP-block and DNS-block. Purpose of the block was to prevent the subscribers of the providers to access The Pirate Bay-website.

The Court of Appeals overturned the ruling, since the providers could show that the block had not been effective since the first ruling. In applying the case law from the European Court of Justice (ECJ), the Court of Appeal held that an access provider is not under an obligation to take measures that are disproportional and/or ineffective.

XS4ALL was represented by Christiaan Alberdingk Thijm and Caroline de Vries of bureau Brandeis.

Read the judgment In Dutch: Arrest Hof Den Haag 20140128 or read the English translations of the most relevant deliberations of the Court of Appeals.