Photo: GLOBAL LOOK PRESS
Last Friday night was truly memorable for Telegram users in Spain: Judge Santiago Pedraz ordered the messenger’s work to be blocked in the country. The reason was complaints from the media companies Mediaset, Atresmedia and Movistar Plus, which stated that Spaniards downloaded their content without copyright permission.
The National Judicial Collegium turned to the service of Pavel Durov, demanding explanations and, at the same time, proposals to resolve the conflict. Telegram representatives ignored the request and with a slight movement of the hand, Mr. Pedraz decided: “block for up to 6 months.” The courier was accused of aiding piracy and telecom operators began to frantically execute the order.
Later, the authority’s press service added: Pedraz ordered the suspension of the service as a measure to secure the claim. He considered this to be the most effective way to stop the complaining magnates’ losses until receiving a response from Durov’s representatives.
A Spanish consumer watchdog took a different view of the block, warning of the “enormous damage” it would cause to “millions of users, as well as companies that legally distribute content on their channels.” The Pirates of Catalonia organization even threatened the Zarzuela Palace with a lawsuit before the European Court for malicious censorship.
Over the weekend, Pedraz thought about it and still postponed blocking Telegram. At the same time, he asked the police for a report on the characteristics of the service and the impact that its ban could have on users. A few hours later, the conclusion was already on the judge’s table.
Having studied all the arguments presented, the court immediately overturned its own decision to block Telegram. Pedraz acknowledged that banning the messenger would mean “obvious harm to the millions of subscribers who use it, and the vast majority of readers have nothing to do with illegal activities.”
The quintessence of the verdict was Pedraza’s conclusion that in addition to the taboo on the data that Spaniards could publish in the service, “in many cases they will be prohibited from carrying out professional tasks.” And this is definitely not good.
In a March interview with the Financial Times, Durov clarified that the number of Telegram users worldwide exceeds 900 million people. Potential investors valued the messenger at $30 billion.
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