Ofcom study: “small yet significant changes” in UK file-sharing behaviour
According to a report published by UK communications regulator Ofcom, the percentage of Internet users who illegally download or stream all of their music fell from 54 percent to 46 percent in the third quarter of last year.
Online Copyright Infringement Tracker documents the results of a survey conducted with 5,500 Internet users over the age of 12 who consume online content in six areas: music, film, TV, e-books, games and software.
The UK Intellectual Property Office funded the study, which was written by Danny Kay, senior associate director at media analyst Kantar Media.
It is second in a series of ‘research waves’ intended to create benchmarks for levels of illegal file-sharing in the UK.
It compares the downloading and streaming behaviour of UK Internet users in the third quarter of 2012 (August to October), with the second quarter (May to July).
Among the study’s findings is an estimate that 16 percent of Internet users have consumed at least one item of online content illegally between August and October, with 5 percent consuming exclusively illegal content.
Consumer confusion about the legality of online activity decreased slightly, with 41 percent of those surveyed claiming to be either “not particularly confident” or “not at all confident” about what online content is legal or illegal, down from 44 percent in the second quarter.
The paper also reveals common reasons for infringing. Fifty percent of respondents said they opted for illegal content because it is free, with 46 percent citing convenience as the most important factor. Forty-three percent say it is “quicker”.
Eighteen percent of infringers said a letter sent by an Internet service provider threatening internet access suspension would put them off downloading or streaming illegal content.
Michael Hart, head of intellectual property at Baker & McKenzie LLP in London, said that the wider availability of content from legitimate sources is a positive step in driving out Internet piracy, though there is still a lot of ignorance about what is legal and what is not.
“[There are] positive movements but probably a lot more scope for improvement,” he said.
“I think part of the problem ... is that the availability of lawful services was so slow to get off the mark, which gave the pirate services a massive head start.”
“There needs to be much improved clarity on what's legal and what’s not legal,” he said, with a focus on “good-quality and fairly-priced legal services.”
He said that there also needs to be a consensus between the content owners and providers: “To be effective the law has to be very focused on what should and should not be legal, and there should be a very clear programme of enforcement. I think that there has to be a co-operation between different groupings in order to try and deal with the piracy question.”
