Illegal File Sharing Debate Rages Among Musicians In the UK

What should be done, if anything, about illegal downloading of music has become one of the most vexing debates worldwide among pop music fans and members of the music industry. A new proposal to allow the government in the UK to wade in and attempt to deal with the problem has caused a public debate to rage among some of the top British recording artists and personnel. The government proposal is to take action against individual repeat offenders by reducing the speed of their Internet access or blocking their access completely.

An artists group called the Featured Artists Coalition has released a public statement opposing the government proposal. It reads, "By demanding blanket suspension powers from the government, the industry is in danger of cutting off a promotional tool that is of great use to fledgling artists who seek to create a buzz around themselves yet don't have the financial support of a major label." The FAC includes artists such as Annie Lennox, Robbie Williams, and Radiohead. The group also believes that the government could not enforce their solution without massive invasion of privacy. The group was also quick to emphasize that it did not embrace illegal downloading and believed that anyone financially benefiting from illegal downloads should be prosecuted.

Another growing coalition of artists, producers and songwriters is publicly opposing the statements of the Featured Artists Coalition. A blog site spearheaded by Lily Allen is gathering statements from a wide variety of prominent music industry personnel. Allen has stated, "The FAC seems to be viewing the government's proposed legislation as an attack on freedom and liberty, but stealing's not really a human right, is it?" James Blunt is a key supporter of Allen's efforts and a post from today by producer Mark Ronson states, "I agree with Lily. Illegal file-sharing is tearing at and could eventually destroy the fabric of what makes the UK recording industry and musical community the most forward-thinking and artist-nurturing in the world."