The unpopular Section 92A of the Copyright Act has been put on hold and may yet face the chop.

Prime Minister John Key has just announced the law will be delayed until March 27 so that a voluntary code of practice can be worked out. But if no solution is reached by then, the law will be suspended.

This is great news for all internet users, and comes amidst growing concern over the law especially among corporate internet users who would have been faced with high compliance costs, which they can ill afford in the current economic climate.

In a statement just released, TUANZ chief executive Ernie Newman has welcomed the move. “We thank, and congratulate the government, and Parliament as a whole, for listening and acting on the concerns expressed.”

The Telecommunications Carriers’ Forum (TCF), which has worked to develop a Code of Practice to cover s92A, has also welcomed the decision.

TUANZ last week wrote to the Prime Minister and other ministers asking for the law to be repealed.