Businesses have been asked to give their views on how an agency could support Britain’s creative industries and prevent illegal access to digital content.
The government wants creators, distributors, commercial rights-holders and consumer groups to respond to a discussion paper looking at the potential benefits and roles of a digital rights agency, and the impact it could have on illegal file-sharing and piracy.
The paper poses questions about how such an agency could work alongside the creative industries, to find new and attractive ways for consumers to access content legally and make the UK a place where investment in creativity is rewarded.
It also looks at how an agency could be structured and funded – for example how industry contributions would be apportioned – and ways of dealing with persistent copyright infringers.
The creation of a digital rights agency was one of the recommendations made in the Digital Britain Interim Report, published in January, which suggested a number of ways to help make the UK a hub for growing creative companies.
Minister for technology, communications and broadcasting, Stephen Carter, said that changing consumer attitudes to illegal content was key.
“Britain’s creative industries are respected and admired the world over and are hugely important to our national competitiveness. But in the new digital age, copyright infringement has become easier and more socially acceptable, so it’s clear we need some form of legislative backstop for the protection of rights as well as new and innovative ways to access legal content,” he said.
“Today we have published proposals in the form of a Straw Man on digital rights. That Straw Man could be torched, tolerated or a touchstone for the start point of constructive debate and design. I for one hope it is the latter.”
David Lammy, minister of state for intellectual property, added: “The real prize here is a rights agency that sorts out the complexities that keep consumers on the right side of the law, and ensure artists get properly paid. We need to make it easier for consumers to do the right thing.”
The full discussion paper can be found at http://www.ipo.gov.uk/digitalbritain.pdf
Comments should be forwarded to DBR@ipo.gov.uk by March 30 2009.
© Crimson Business Ltd. 2009