Popular blogging site Medium, recently blocked by the Albanian government, has now been unblocked following public backlash.
According to an Audiovisual Media Authority (AMA) request sent to the Electronic Communications Authority (AKEP), Medium was included in a list of 25 websites access to which should be blocked. The request came as a result of a copyright complaint from Albanian actor Ermal Mamaqi.
AMA is now unblocking access to Medium, claiming that the website has deleted posts that violated copyright.
However, Medium already has a policy for copyright infringement according to which the website handles complaints. It is unclear whether AMA attempted to file a copyright complaint or communicate with Medium before blocking access to the site entirely. As the Albanian Media Council pointed out, “If someone posts on Facebook a list of pirated sites, this does not mean that the Albanian government should shut down Facebook.”
