U2 manager slates ISPs over illegal downloading

The manager of the rock group U2 has recently slated Internet Service Providers for their failure to do more to stop illegal downloading amongst broadband users.

The topic of illegal downloading has been at the centre of much controversy over the last year or two, and in addition to entertainment industry groups demanding that more is done to stop this practice some music and entertainment artists have also voiced their concerns.
It has now been revealed that the manager of the rock band U2 has also been slating Internet providers recently, accusing them of failing to do enough to stop illegal downloading amongst broadband users. Paul McGuiness has said that ISPs need to take more extreme measures to deal with broadband users that are found to be file sharing illegally on their networks.

In an article he wrote: “I am convinced that ISPs are not going to help the music and film industry voluntarily. Some things have got to come with the force of legislation, President Sarkozy understood that point when he became the first head of state to champion laws to require ISPs to reduce piracy in France.”

He added: “In Britain, the major political parties have understood it, too. Following the passing of new anti-piracy laws in April’s Digital Economy Act, Britain and France now have some of the world’s best legal environments for rebuilding our battered music business.”

He concluded that services such as Spotify could be the answer as long as it could prove that the service could both collect revenues from consumers and pass them onto the artists, publishers, and labels. He said: “Households will pay for a subscription service like Spotify, or they will pay for a service bundled into their broadband bill, to an ISP such as Sky and Virgin Media. But many customers will also take out more expensive added-value packages, with better deals, including faster access to new releases.”

Source – Uncut