Pirate party claims success in Euro-Green policy

Greens in the European Parliament have taken Swedish Pirate Party copyright views on board, according to Pirate Party founder Rick Falkvinge.

The Green Party group argued for fair use in a position paper (PDF) on copyright, Falkvinge said in a blog post on Friday.

"To share copies, or otherwise spread or make use of use somebody else's copyrighted work, should never be prohibited if it is done non-commercially and without a profit motive," said the position paper. "Peer-to-peer file sharing is an example of such an activity that should be legal."

In addition, the group said that users should be able to legally circumvent digital rights management for non-commercial uses, and that artists should be able to reuse copyrighted material in mashups.

Falkvinge hailed this as a "huge victory" for the party.

"This is a huge win for the pirate perspective on culture and knowledge and an advancement of our positions by miles and leagues," said Falkvinge.

Pirate parties have been making political headway in Europe since 2009. The Swedish Pirate Party won a seat in the European Parliament in June 2009. In August 2009, the UK Pirate Party was set up. The German Pirate Party won 15 seats in Berlin in September 2011.