Post by Tony on Jul 11, 2006 10:27:09 GMT
The British recorded music industry has today written to internet service providers Tiscali and Cable & Wireless requesting that they suspend 59 internet accounts used for illegal filesharing.
The move marks a significant development of the BPI’s three year long campaign against illegal filesharing. Until now the BPI has concentrated its efforts on individual uploaders. It has pursued legal action against 139 uploaders.
All four cases which have gone to court have been found in the BPI’s favour. 111 uploaders have chosen to settle out of court paying amounts of up to £6,500 in settlement. While the BPI retains the right to pursue cases against individual uploaders, the move against ISPs who have so far failed to take effective steps to stop illegal filesharing marks a significant development in the BPI campaign - allowing the record industry to deal with a greater volume of cases more quickly and efficiently.
BPI Chairman Peter Jamieson said, "We have demonstrated in the courts that unauthorised filesharing is against the law.
We have said for months that it is unacceptable for ISPs to turn a blind eye to industrial-scale copyright infringement. We are providing Tiscali and Cable & Wireless with unequivocal evidence of copyright infringement via their services.
It is now up to them to put their house in order and pull the plug on these people."
The BPI’s evidence has been gathered using the unauthorised filesharing networks themselves. Whenever an individual uses a filesharing network they reveal the unique IP address for the internet account being used at that time. The BPI is able to identify from the IP address which ISP provides the service.
But only the ISP knows to which individual the IP address belongs. The BPI has identified 17 Tiscali IP addresses and 42 Cable & Wireless IP addresses which have been used to upload significant quantities of music owned by BPI members. It is requesting that the ISPs suspend the accounts of the 59 individuals until they sign undertakings agreeing to stop unauthorised filesharing. BPI General Counsel Roz Groome said,
"Both Tiscali and Cable & Wireless state in their terms of use for subscribers that internet accounts should not be used for copyright infringement. We now invite them to enforce their own terms of use."
UK record industry trade association the BPI today revealed research indicating that the cost to British music of illegal filesharing reached £1.1bn in the three years to 2005.
New figures from independent research company TNS Worldpanel estimate the cost to British music in 2005 of people illegally filesharing rather than paying for music was £414m.
Added to the £278m lost sales in 2003 and £376m in 2004, the loss to British music over the past three years is estimated at £1.1bn, or approximately £650m at trade value. BPI chairman Peter Jamieson said,
“The UK record industry is the biggest single investor in British music. Too often people believe that when they take music illegally over the internet it is a victimless crime. But when people share music files illegally, they are stealing the future of British musicians and the people who invest in them.
” For the past three years the BPI in conjunction with the BVA (British Video Association) has commissioned TNS to investigate the financial impact to the music and video industries of downloading via the internet. In 2005 questionnaires were sent to half of TNS’ 15,000 Audio Visual Trak panel of 12-74 year olds in Great Britain, with a response rate of 44%, giving a total sample of 3,317 respondents.
The TNS panel monitors consumers’ actual purchasing behaviour over time. This removes reliance on individuals’ memories of past purchasing behaviour for specific time periods. Using this type of data it has been possible to measure the cost of downloading to the UK record industry by comparing the expenditure pattern of illegal filesharers with that of non-filesharers.
It is this comparison which has produced the figure of £1.1bn lost to the UK record industry over the past three years.
As the table below indicates, the impact has been particularly acute on singles sales where an overall decline of 9% on singles buying rises to 34% for illegal downloaders. The substitutional effect is clear.
____________________________
Change in spend on entertainment products (Illegal downloaders vs. total market)
Singles (illegal downloaders; -34% | total market; -9%)
Compilation Albums (dl; -27% | tm; -22%)
Total Albums (-14% | -1%)Total Music (-16% | -2%)
Total Video (-14% | -3%)Total Games (-24% | -3%)
Total Entertainment; (-17% | -3%) Base; 52 w/e 08 Jan 2006 vs 52 w/e Jan 2005Source; TNS Worldpanel
View graphic at; tinyurl.com/gtz3a
____________________________
BPI Chairman Jamieson said: "Music fans know the value of great music.
Britain's music scene is currently as vibrant as it has been for years but illegal filesharers need to understand the impact of what they do.
The battle against illegal filesharing is a battle for the future of British music.” Other key insights in the TNS survey include:
- Further indications that the BPI’s campaign against illegal filesharing is succeeding with the percentage of the population illegally downloading down to 15.4% in 2005 from 16% in 2004 and 17.8% in 2003
The move marks a significant development of the BPI’s three year long campaign against illegal filesharing. Until now the BPI has concentrated its efforts on individual uploaders. It has pursued legal action against 139 uploaders.
All four cases which have gone to court have been found in the BPI’s favour. 111 uploaders have chosen to settle out of court paying amounts of up to £6,500 in settlement. While the BPI retains the right to pursue cases against individual uploaders, the move against ISPs who have so far failed to take effective steps to stop illegal filesharing marks a significant development in the BPI campaign - allowing the record industry to deal with a greater volume of cases more quickly and efficiently.
BPI Chairman Peter Jamieson said, "We have demonstrated in the courts that unauthorised filesharing is against the law.
We have said for months that it is unacceptable for ISPs to turn a blind eye to industrial-scale copyright infringement. We are providing Tiscali and Cable & Wireless with unequivocal evidence of copyright infringement via their services.
It is now up to them to put their house in order and pull the plug on these people."
The BPI’s evidence has been gathered using the unauthorised filesharing networks themselves. Whenever an individual uses a filesharing network they reveal the unique IP address for the internet account being used at that time. The BPI is able to identify from the IP address which ISP provides the service.
But only the ISP knows to which individual the IP address belongs. The BPI has identified 17 Tiscali IP addresses and 42 Cable & Wireless IP addresses which have been used to upload significant quantities of music owned by BPI members. It is requesting that the ISPs suspend the accounts of the 59 individuals until they sign undertakings agreeing to stop unauthorised filesharing. BPI General Counsel Roz Groome said,
"Both Tiscali and Cable & Wireless state in their terms of use for subscribers that internet accounts should not be used for copyright infringement. We now invite them to enforce their own terms of use."
Illegal filesharing costs British Music £1.1bn : 4:4:2006
*Filesharers cut their expenditure on music by £1.1bn over three years
*BPI announces two more court wins as filesharer settlements pass the 100 mark
*Signs that litigation campaign is working as percentage illegally filesharing declines
Illegal filesharing costs British Music £1.1bn : 4:4:2006
*Filesharers cut their expenditure on music by £1.1bn over three years
*BPI announces two more court wins as filesharer settlements pass the 100 mark
*Signs that litigation campaign is working as percentage illegally filesharing declines
*Filesharers cut their expenditure on music by £1.1bn over three years
*BPI announces two more court wins as filesharer settlements pass the 100 mark
*Signs that litigation campaign is working as percentage illegally filesharing declines
Illegal filesharing costs British Music £1.1bn : 4:4:2006
*Filesharers cut their expenditure on music by £1.1bn over three years
*BPI announces two more court wins as filesharer settlements pass the 100 mark
*Signs that litigation campaign is working as percentage illegally filesharing declines
UK record industry trade association the BPI today revealed research indicating that the cost to British music of illegal filesharing reached £1.1bn in the three years to 2005.
New figures from independent research company TNS Worldpanel estimate the cost to British music in 2005 of people illegally filesharing rather than paying for music was £414m.
Added to the £278m lost sales in 2003 and £376m in 2004, the loss to British music over the past three years is estimated at £1.1bn, or approximately £650m at trade value. BPI chairman Peter Jamieson said,
“The UK record industry is the biggest single investor in British music. Too often people believe that when they take music illegally over the internet it is a victimless crime. But when people share music files illegally, they are stealing the future of British musicians and the people who invest in them.
” For the past three years the BPI in conjunction with the BVA (British Video Association) has commissioned TNS to investigate the financial impact to the music and video industries of downloading via the internet. In 2005 questionnaires were sent to half of TNS’ 15,000 Audio Visual Trak panel of 12-74 year olds in Great Britain, with a response rate of 44%, giving a total sample of 3,317 respondents.
The TNS panel monitors consumers’ actual purchasing behaviour over time. This removes reliance on individuals’ memories of past purchasing behaviour for specific time periods. Using this type of data it has been possible to measure the cost of downloading to the UK record industry by comparing the expenditure pattern of illegal filesharers with that of non-filesharers.
It is this comparison which has produced the figure of £1.1bn lost to the UK record industry over the past three years.
As the table below indicates, the impact has been particularly acute on singles sales where an overall decline of 9% on singles buying rises to 34% for illegal downloaders. The substitutional effect is clear.
____________________________
Change in spend on entertainment products (Illegal downloaders vs. total market)
Singles (illegal downloaders; -34% | total market; -9%)
Compilation Albums (dl; -27% | tm; -22%)
Total Albums (-14% | -1%)Total Music (-16% | -2%)
Total Video (-14% | -3%)Total Games (-24% | -3%)
Total Entertainment; (-17% | -3%) Base; 52 w/e 08 Jan 2006 vs 52 w/e Jan 2005Source; TNS Worldpanel
View graphic at; tinyurl.com/gtz3a
____________________________
BPI Chairman Jamieson said: "Music fans know the value of great music.
Britain's music scene is currently as vibrant as it has been for years but illegal filesharers need to understand the impact of what they do.
The battle against illegal filesharing is a battle for the future of British music.” Other key insights in the TNS survey include:
- Further indications that the BPI’s campaign against illegal filesharing is succeeding with the percentage of the population illegally downloading down to 15.4% in 2005 from 16% in 2004 and 17.8% in 2003
