Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
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Education, Enforcement and New Business Models Essential to Tackling Unlawful Filesharing
Lord Mandelson today called for a three-pronged approach to tackle unlawful peer-to-peer file-sharing.
The Business Secretary said that new laws in isolation would not be enough to tackle the problem, which costs the creative industries millions of pounds each year.
He called on ISPs and the creative industries to work with Government to ensure a package is put in place which balances education, enforcement and new business models to discourage unlawful downloading.
Speaking today at the C&binet creative industries conference, Lord Mandelson confirmed proposals set out in the recent consultation on unlawful file-sharing would form the basis of measures in the Digital Economy Bill.
The Government expects that warning notifications, followed up with targeted legal action by rights holders, should be the only enforcement action required to significantly reduce the level of unlawful file-sharing. However the Government would have reserve powers to issue an order requiring ISPs to invoke technical measures. Account suspension will be an option available to apply at the last resort for the most serious infringers.
Highlighting the scale of the problem, Lord Mandelson referred to the music industry’s assessment that said only one in every 20 tracks downloaded in the UK is downloaded lawfully.
Lord Mandelson said:
“It’s clear that whilst unlawful file-sharing excites a strong response from all sides, it is not a victimless act. It is a genuine threat to our creative industries.
“The creative sector has faced challenges to protected formats before. But the threat faced today from online infringement, particularly unlawful file-sharing, is of a different scale altogether. We cannot sit back and do nothing.
“We will put in place a fair, thorough process, involving clear warnings to people suspected of unlawful file-sharing, with technical measures such as account suspension only used as a very last resort.
“Only persistent rule breakers would be affected - and there would be an independent, clear and easy appeals process to ensure that the correct infringer is penalised.”
He added that educating consumers in the value of intellectual property rights would help to bring about changes in behaviour - alongside innovation and new business models enabling consumers to download content at competitive prices.
Lord Mandelson said:
“A 'legislate and enforce' approach to beating piracy can only ever be part of the solution. The best long-term solution has to be a market in which those who love music and film, for example, can find a deal that makes acting unlawfully an unnecessary risk."
In other areas, Lord Mandelson said there was a case for copyright laws to be modernised to reflect reasonable consumer behaviour which did not damage the sustainability of the creative industries.
This would mean that, for example, someone who has bought a CD would be able to copy it to their iPod or share it with family members without acting unlawfully. Such activity is not lawful under the current framework.
He announced © The Way Ahead – the outcome of a review of copyright in the UK with recommendations to simplify complicated copyright laws across Europe and beyond, allowing for greater access and increased freedoms.
The review was led by David Lammy, Minister of State for Higher Education and Intellectual Property.
David Lammy said:
“I want people to have the freedom to enjoy music, books and film in creative ways, without fear of breaking the law.
“This is not an excuse to infringe copyright through unlawful file-sharing, but is about being able to do more with legally obtained content, such as remixing music and mashing-up content to create grime and hip-hop tracks.
“I don’t want to see a regime based on arbitrary rules, but a system that recognises how consumers behave at a time when we rely increasingly on technology in our everyday lives.”
Notes to Editors
1. Speaking at the C&binet creative industries conference, Lord Mandelson called for a three-pronged approach:
· Working with ISPs and the creative industries to educate consumers that unlawful file-sharing is not a victimless act and is a genuine threat to the creative industries.
· The development of commercial models by rights holders in collaboration with Internet Service Providers to offer digital content legitimately, and at the best price for consumers.
· A thorough notification process, backed by the possibility of imposing technical measures, aimed at those who persistently engage in unlawful file-sharing.
2. Lord Mandelson also reassured ISPs that they would not be expected to bear the full cost of implementing and delivering the notifications to suspected infringers. A flat fee per notification will be set, payable by the rights holder, in a way that incentivises both rights holders and ISPs to keep the process efficient and cost effective.
3. The Government will publish its response to the consultation on unlawful peer-to-peer file-sharing in parallel with the Digital Economy Bill, in late November.
4. Full details on © The Way Ahead can be found at: http://www.ipo.gov.uk/c-strategy-digitalage.pdf
5. The Digital Britain Report, published in June 2009 is at: http://www.bis.gov.uk/building-britains-digital-future
Department for Business, Innovation & Skills
The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) is building a dynamic and competitive UK economy by: creating the conditions for business success; promoting innovation, enterprise and science; and giving everyone the skills and opportunities to succeed. To achieve this it will foster world-class universities and promote an open global economy. BIS - Investing in our future.
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