Introducing incentives through compensation could provide a framework for a solution to the piracy problem
PRS for Music is launching a paper in an effort to continue the fight against music and wider media piracy and ensure the industry is properly compensated for illegal file-sharing, it was announced today.
The organisation, which collects royalties on behalf of songwriters and composers, has circulated a discussion paper titled ‘Moving Digital Britain Forward Without Leaving Creative Britain Behind’ to key stakeholders in the music industry, government and technology sector as the estimated illegal consumption continues to dwarf that of legal music services*.
The premise of the paper is underpinned by changes brought about by the Digital Economy Act. The Act states that the UK now has to measure peer-to-peer usage and that allows its harm to be priced. PRS for Music offer all stakeholders in the content and connectivity industries a new solution to the perennial problem of media piracy by introducing incentives, through compensation, that can benefit both content and connectivity industries.
1. Media piracy is a problem, and with the advent of next generation internet access, that problem will not only get worse, but affect a broader range of media industries, including TV, Film and Gaming.
2. With the introduction of the Digital Economy Act, the harm caused by the problem of piracy has to be measured, and if a problem can be measured it can be priced.
3. PRS for Music offers all the stakeholders a solution, essentially by introducing incentives through compensation, so that they can work towards eliminating the piracy problem.
4. The desired end game is one of no compensation as there is no pollution of piracy on networks – allowing ‘dumb internet pipes’ to get smart and become the Next Generation Broadcasters.