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Flashback: UK Business Secretary sets date for blocking filesharers’ internet connections | The bait and switch: EU now to endorse internet disconnection for ‘piracy’ | UK: 70% oppose internet ban for filesharers, poll shows | Security boss calls for end to net anonymity | UN Urges International Action on Cyber Security Threat | Judge in Pirate Bay Appeal Removed for Bias | MP Charlie Angus on copyright: industry lobby pulling for ‘dead business model’ | UK Government to consider internet disconnection policy, restrictions | The dawn of Internet censorship in Germany | Pirate Bay Retrial Denied | Stockholm Court: Pirate Bay Judge ‘Unbiased’ | Next up for France: police keyloggers and Web censorship | France passes ‘three strikes’ Internet surveillance law | Pirate Bay lawyer calls for retrial after judge confirms ties to copyright groups | Jail terms for Pirate Bay founders, appeal in works | Cybersecurity law would give feds unprecedented net control | Do We Need a New Internet? | Protests in Australia over proposal to block Web sites | Microsoft patents web moderator robots, forbidden phrases to be memory-holed | Berners-Lee W3C Consortium to ‘Authorize’ Website Content? | Law Professor tells tech conference: plans to shut down Internet already on deck | Canada Considering “Three Strikes and You’re Out” ISP Policy

Rachel Shields, The Independent
November 1, 2009

Crackdown on music piracy could further harm ailing industry

People who illegally download music from the internet also spend more money on music than anyone else, according to a new study. The survey, published today, found that those who admit illegally downloading music spent an average of £77 a year on music – £33 more than those who claim that they never download music dishonestly.

The findings suggest that plans by the Secretary of State for Business, Peter Mandelson, to crack down on illegal downloaders by threatening to cut their internet connections with a “three strikes and you’re out” rule could harm the music industry by punishing its core customers.

An estimated seven million UK users download files illegally every year. The record industry’s trade association, the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), believes this copyright infringement will cost the industry £200m this year.

The poll, which surveyed 1,000 16- to 50-year-olds with internet access, found that one in 10 people admit to downloading music illegally.

“The latest approach from the Government will not help prop up an ailing music industry. Politicians and music companies need to recognise that the nature of music consumption has changed, and consumers are demanding lower prices and easier access,” said Peter Bradwell, from the think-tank Demos, which commissioned the new poll conducted by Ipsos Mori.

However, music industry figures insist the figures offer a skewed picture. The poll suggested the Government’s plan to disconnect illegal downloaders if they ignore official warning letters could deter people from internet piracy, with 61 per cent of illegal downloaders surveyed admitting they would be put off downloading music illegally by the threat of having their internet service cut off for a month.

“The people who file-share are the ones who are interested in music,” said Mark Mulligan of Forrester Research. “They use file-sharing as a discovery mechanism. We have a generation of young people who don’t have any concept of music as a paid-for commodity,” he continued. “You need to have it at a price point you won’t notice.”

The Digital Economy Bill, which will become law next April, sets out new measures to crack down on internet piracy. But these have generated criticism from internet service providers, who say they will be difficult to enforce.

Artists are also divided over the issue, with Lily Allen and James Blunt recently supporting the Government’s stance, while the Latin pop star Shakira argues that illegal file sharing brings her closer to her fans.

This year Virgin Media and Universal Music plan to launch the first music subscription service allowing customers to download and keep unlimited tracks from Universal’s catalogue for a fee of around £15.

Source | See also under Internet: UK Business Secretary sets date for blocking filesharers’ internet connections | The bait and switch: EU now to endorse internet disconnection for ‘piracy’ | CRTC allows network throttling as ‘last resort’, encourages pay per use, bandwidth caps | UK: 70% oppose internet ban for filesharers, poll shows | Security boss calls for end to net anonymity | UN Urges International Action on Cyber Security Threat | Think before you post, privacy czar says | Judge in Pirate Bay Appeal Removed for Bias | Case for Internet spying not closed | US ‘to loosen’ grip on internet | U.S. moves to adopt 6 net neutrality rules | Tech giants respond to Media with ideas on charging readers for news online | Planned Internet, wireless surveillance laws worry watchdogs | Six Days Left: Canadian Net Users Caught As Copyright Consultation Nears Conclusion | Chamber of commerce draws fire for backing Bell, Telus on Net reseller speed limits | It’s a great day for freedom of speech: ‘Hate Speech’ laws found to violate Charter Rights | Keeping Google out of libraries | Cyber Bullying Case Officially Dismissed for Vagueness | MP Charlie Angus on copyright: industry lobby pulling for ‘dead business model’ | Ottawa denies altering public’s ECopyright Consultation submissions | Security guards stop MPs, students from distributing fair use flyers at Toronto copyright townhall | Bill would give president emergency control of Internet | Bush’s Search Policy For Travelers Is Kept | ACLU Sues US Department of Homeland Security over Border Laptop Searches | Facebook to make privacy changes, keep user data indefinitely if not deleted | UK Government to consider internet disconnection policy, restrictions | CRTC wants internet pricing answers from Bell | Reuters Steps Up; Says Linking, Excerpting, Sharing Are Good Things For The News | Former copyright lobbyist is Obama’s top pick for US Attorney | UK ISPs condemn Internet surveillance plans | Can The Public Be Heard On Copyright Issues? | Associated Press Tries To DRM The News | iPods, Internet won’t end dictatorship | Copyright Consultation Launches: Time For Canadians To Speak Out | Third stab at copyright law ‘reform’ to kick off with consultations | Facebook violates privacy law: watchdog | Cyber Attacks Traced to the U.S., Britain | Don’t regulate traffic management, Internet providers argue | Yahoo! protects user privacy — and gets fined by Belgium | French Senate passes revamped ‘anti-piracy’ bill | Lazy Hacker and Little Worm Set Off Korean Cyberwar Media Frenzy | Net Neutrality hearings begin with conflicting claims | Internet speed control faces scrutiny at CRTC hearings | Murdoch CEO Labels Bloggers “Political Extremists” | Should linking be illegal? | Psiphon braintrust: Ottawa needs a strategy for cyberwar | US ‘concerned’ over cyber threat | Pirate Bay Retrial Denied | UK to found new ‘cyber-security’ units attached to national eavesdropping centre | US Cyber Security Czar Front-Runner No Friend of Privacy | ISPs must help police snoop on internet under new bill | The dawn of Internet censorship in Germany | Twitter emerges as news source during Iran media crackdown | UK plans to integrate ‘cybersecurity’ centre with US, Canada | Prepare to be boarded! 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