Digital Economy Act could affect broadband prices for consumers

Officials have warned that the cost of broadband services in the UK could increase as a result of the implementation costs of the Digital Economy Act.

Britain has become known as one of the countries that offers the best value for money on broadband, with consumers able to enjoy very reasonable prices for high quality broadband services. However, this could all change as a result of the Digital Economy Act, which could result in broadband prices being pushed up for consumers.

Officials have warned that the way in which the costs to put the Digital Economy Act into action are implemented will impact on the costs that are passed onto the consumer. This comes after the government announced that the cost of implementing the Act would be shared between copyright holders and Internet Service Providers.

The bulk of the cost, which is seventy five percent, will be the responsibility of the copyright holder, but the remaining twenty five percent will be paid by Internet Service Providers, and consumer groups have said that the additional costs incurred by ISPs will then be passed onto consumers in the form of higher broadband bills.

The costs of implementing the Digital Economy Act have been described as proportionate by Ed Vaizey, who said: “Protecting our valuable creative industries, which have already suffered significant losses as a result of people sharing digital content without paying for it, is at the heart of these measures. The Digital Economy Act serves to reduce online copyright infringement through a fair and robust process and at the same time provides breathing space to develop better business models for consumers who buy music, films and books online.”

Source – eweekeurope