Illegal downloaders thumb noses at authorities

London: Sending warning letters to people who download illegally copied music, TV shows and films from the internet will do little to stop them, according to research published on Wednesday.

Under a government-brokered deal last year some internet providers sent letters to persistent illegal file-sharers warning that their actions could land them in court.

However, according to the 2009 Digital Entertainment Survey, only a third of internet users consider the letters a deterrent. That was down from 70 per cent in the same survey last year.

Asked whether the threat of having their internet connection cut off would stop them, four out of five internet users said they would stop downloading illegally.

The survey, by specialist media lawyers Wiggin, comes as Lord Carter prepares to publish his final Digital Britain report, which will include measures intended to stop Britain's creative industries being washed away by the tide of online piracy.

Lord Carter has promised legislation to combat piracy and it is expected to codify the scheme under which warning letters are sent to illegal file-sharers.

"The findings of this report show that letter-sending alone will not be enough and that much more needs to be done if there is to be a real reduction in unlawful file-sharing," said Simon Baggs, litigation partner at Wiggin.

The film and music industries believe that with an estimated six million people in Britain illegally sharing files, the suggestion they should pursue all pirates through the courts is unworkable.

Instead, Britain has been urged follow the lead of France's recently passed Hadopi law, disconnecting persistent illegal file-sharers for a year.

However, health secretary culture secretary Andy Burnham said the government did not support such draconian measures.

Instead it wants "technical measures" to crack down on persistent offenders.

The music and film industry has been lobbying Lord Carter in recent weeks about introducing online "speed humps", which would involve ISPs slowing the internet connections of persistent illegal file-sharers.

It is this sort of "technical measure" which is expected to be included in the final Digital Britain report, with the new legislation overseen by Ofcom.

Many in the ISP industry believe such measures will not deter pirates, who will merely disguise their traffic or turn to other ways of sharing content.

Last week Carphone Warehouse chief executive Charles Dunstone, whose TalkTalk unit has campaigned hard against attempts to get Britain's ISPs to police the web, likened battling the pirates to a Tom and Jerry cartoon.

"The mouse always wins in this battle and we need to be careful that politicians do not get talked into putting legislation in place that, in the end, ends up looking stupid," he said.

Instead Dunstone, like many in the ISP industry, reckons the only way to secure creative industries is by building compelling services that consumers will pay for.