A bill to renew the Higher Education Act cleared the U.S. House of Representatives Thursday with provisions that would require colleges to buy computer tools to detect student music and video piracy, and offer subscription-based music services for students.
Officials of Educause and the American Council on Education had been pushing lawmakers to remove the provisions, saying they would be costly and ineffective at combating the sharing of music and video files on college campuses.
Members of the House and Senate are expected to reconcile the House bill (HR 4137) with a similar Senate bill. The Senate version has a provision about digital theft — also included in the House bill — that Educause supports. It would require colleges to inform students annually of their policies on online copyright infringement. —Andrea L. Foster
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