UK internet service providers could face a troubled future following a United States Supreme Court judgement on internet libel. The case of Prodigy.com in New York has highlighted the apparently diverging direction US and English courts are taking to online defamation.
While UK ISPs are still reeling from the realisation they could be liable for the site they host - following an out of court settlement last month involving Demon - the US courts have reinforced the opposite view.
Already some cautious UK companies and individuals have moved their sites to US servers, says internet lawyer Jonathan Armstrong. The latest Supreme Court ruling in the Prodigy case could drive others in the same direction, he says.