Around seven million people in the UK are involved in illegal downloads at huge cost to the
economy - but changing attitudes is going to be tough. A report warns that criminalising
people who download illegally may not be the right course. Rory Cellan-Jones reports:
The report for a body advising the government on copyright looks at consumer attitudes to
illegal downloading. Researchers found 1.3 million people online on just one file-sharing
network on a weekday and worked out that over a year, they were getting free access to
material worth 120 billion pounds.
The report says seven million people who download illegally in the UK can't all be students,
older people must also be involved. But it says there's uncertainty about what is or is not
illegal, and the fact that so much on the internet is free only adds to the confusion.
The report warns the government that criminalising downloaders could have huge economic