Did you know that, according to music industry experts, illegal downloading has reached crisis point in not only the UK but Europe as a whole? A new report has revealed that illegal file sharing has actually reached the point where it is likely that it will cost the industry €240 billion by 2015, and that accounts for more than a million jobs.
This particular study is the latest in a long line of reports that have made illegal downloading more and more of an issue. It was conducted by an expert economics firm, TERA Consultants, which established that the level of revenue lost was at €1.4 billion in 2008. Furthermore, this only takes the UK, France, Spain, Italy and Germany into account.
Although the information is alarming, Jim Killock, the Open Rights Group (ORG) has voiced his disproval over this report: “I am fed up of hearing corporate propaganda being deployed in order to justify intrusions on our rights to freedom of speech, privacy and to a fair trial. We have no truck with infringement of copyright, but it is shameful that anyone from the Labour movement can attempt to justify removal of vital services such as the internet as a punishment.”
Of course, the latter part of his statement relates to the government proposal to cut off the Internet to homes that have been proven to be the source of copyright infringement under the Digital Economy Bill. The problem is that they would then take away individuals’ livelihoods when they have not necessarily done anything wrong.
Being in favour of punishment for piracy is most definitely a good thing but you cannot take away the freedoms of people to achieve that in such a way because it does not discriminate. The government are undoubtedly taking this too far. Although they need to come up with a solution to the problem and fast, this is not it.
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