Illegal downloading could be boosted through super-fast broadband

As part of the Digital Economy Bill the government has promised to ensure that the UK gets access to super-fast broadband whilst at the same time taking action to tamp out illegal downloading through some controversial measures. However, many believe that access to super-fast broadband could actually increase illegal downloading activity.

Increasing broadband speeds and access across the UK is something that the government and the other political parties are keen to address, and party leaders have used the promise of superfast broadband to try and win votes from consumers who are eager to access faster speeds when using their broadband services.

In addition to promising high speed broadband to the UK the government has also promised to crack down on illegal filesharing as part of it controversial Digital Economy Bill. However, it seems that one promise could cancel out the other, as many people believe that access to super-fast broadband services could actually end up increasing the level of illegal downloading.

Research was recently carried out showing that eighteen percent of internet users had admitted to using the web to perform illegal downloading. Seventy four percent of these people said that they had illegally downloaded music from the Internet whilst forty one percent had illegally downloaded movies. Around twenty five percent of them had accessed pirated software via the Internet.

One industry official said: “Illegal downloading is already a big problem for the likes of the music and film industries and with superfast broadband packages set to become commonplace, the problem seems likely to get worse.

For many people, broadband is as essential a service as electricity and gas, and those who suffer Wi-Fi hijacking or share a connection with multiple users should not be penalised for the actions of others.”

Source – Network World