Lawyer claims internet child porn success

The American state of New York is claiming a ground-breaking success in the global battle to prevent child pornography being transmitted on the internet.

The case involved a website which showed a four-year-old child being raped.

The New York state attorney general, Eliot Spitzer, took action against the firm, Buffnet, which provided the internet link Internet Service Provider, or ISP , on the grounds that -- while it is not responsible for the content of websites to which it provides access -- it breaks the law if it facilitates access to material of a criminal nature.

Buffnet denied any responsibility for access to the site.

But after two years of pressure on staff and the seizure of company records, it has pleaded guilty and promised to cooperate in any further investigations into alleged internet crime.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service