http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2415814,00.asp
The Copyright Alert System, as it's been named, will allow an individual to receive up to six "alerts" when it's been detected that said user is sharing copyrighted content – after said copyright owner complains, that is. These alerts, according to the Copyright Alert System's website, will eventually result in a "mitigation measure" for those who continue to share copyright material.
Those "mitigation measures" aren't as severe as some of the copyright-protection measures found in other countries – namely, France's "three strikes" HADOPI law that allows an ISP to completely cut off a user's service after a few accusations of copyright violations.
Nevertheless, they could include the throttling of a user's Internet speed, or a prompt that forces a user to contact the ISP or complete an educational session about copyright before being allowed to access the Web once again.
However, with sources tipping off both Torrentfreak and The Daily Dot about the upcoming roll-out of the "six strikes" plan – in addition to the recent redesign of the Center for Copyright Information's website – there's a little more credibility lent to the notion that Comcast might indeed lead off as the first ISP to incorporate the new plan starting Monday. It's expected that the other ISPs will begin participating in the new Copyright Alert System at various points throughout the week.
Interestingly enough, reports Torrentfreak, the entire premise of the Copyright Alert System isn't to punish "hardcore pirates." Rather, the goal of the program is to educate the public in general about copyright policies in the digital age, as it's presumed that those looking to seriously share in copyright material will be able to evade owners' discovery techniques by using VPNs or proxies to conceal the source of their legitimate Internet accounts.