Ofcom concedes defeat in 4chan case(prestonbyrne.com)
416 points by iamnothere 5 days ago | 407 comments
tl;dr: Ofcom has effectively conceded it cannot enforce Online Safety Act fines against 4chan, acknowledging in parliamentary testimony that foreign courts can block recovery—a direct consequence of dicta in 4chan v. Ofcom suggesting US courts would refuse to enforce such judgments on First Amendment grounds. The author, 4chan's lawyer, argues this vindicates proposed US legislation (the GRANITE and HOMEFRONT Acts) to strip sovereign immunity from foreign censors. Ofcom is expected to next seek unilateral UK site-blocking powers from Parliament, which the author notes would be easily circumvented via VPN.
HN Discussion:
  • ↑Enforcement attempt was poorly conceived; Ofcom overreached without practical leverage
  • ↑This reflects broader UK/European government incompetence or regulatory overreach
  • ↑This is groundwork for domestic censorship infrastructure like DPI and site-blocking
  • ↓Economic coercion via trade deals is an equally valid enforcement mechanism being ignored by the author
  • ↓The author's framing of America as free defender is hypocritical given US domestic authoritarianism