Web User looks at the reactions of the music industry, ISPs and politicians.

Government

Culture, Media and Sport Secretary Andy Burnham said that workable systems of protecting copyright holders' interests were vital if creative industries were to prosper.

"We expect Britain to produce the best bands and films in the world. But that will only happen if we find new ways of rewarding our creative talent and investing in new names," Burnham said.

"Britain's creative industries have grown quickly in the last 10 years and will play a bigger role in our future. Their success is critically underpinned by workable systems of copyright and that is why the issues we are discussing today go to the heart of our economy," he continued.

ISPs

ISP Tiscali said it was still concerned that there could be legal implications but expressed satisfaction that progress had been made.

"We will still require that the proper legal process is followed before the release of data or escalation to other similar actions against any of our customers. But, the MOU has brought together the major ISPs and the music/movie industries, under the leadership of Ofcom our regulator, which is a significant improvement on where we stood before," the company said in a statement.

Charles Dunstone, The Carphone Warehouse's chief executive, said of the agreement: "We will not divulge a customer's details or disconnect them on the say so of the content industry, but we will work with rights holders to develop a sensible and legal approach founded on protecting consumer rights and privacy."

The music industry

BPI chief executive Geoff Taylor said that the best way to tackle the problem of piracy was for all interested parties to work together.

"The BPI has always believed that a partnership approach is the best way forward, as we showed with our education campaign with Virgin Media, launched in May. This has demonstrated that ISPs and the music business can work together positively to raise awareness about illegal file-sharing," Taylor said.

"In addition, the music business is constantly innovating to offer new, safe and legal ways to enjoy music online, and to create a future for digital music where creativity and copyright are respected," he continued.

John Kennedy, chairman of the IFPI, praised the government's role in brokering the deal.

"The British Government has demonstrated that it wants ISPs to join in an effective partnership with creative industries. It is important that it now drives the process forward to a solution with urgency, and that it achieves concrete, measurable results," Kennedy said.

Analysts

Mark Mulligan, analyst at Jupiter Research, appreciated the difficult position that copyright holders found themselves in.

"If the BPI could get a sizeable chunk of file-sharing kids off the network, that will be a quantifiable success for what is a significantly more palatable approach to the problem than the RIAA has pursued and France is pursuing," he said.

"We fully expect the libertarians to cry foul. Going after your own customers is only ever a last resort, but that is exactly what the UK music industry is facing now, and the BPI is damned if it does, damned if it doesn't," Mulligan said.

Rob Barnes, head of broadband and mobile at moneysupermarket.com, said that the plans needed to be executed carefully.

“The agreement is a step in the right direction to stopping illegal downloading but there must be an element of discretion involved in its enforcement. The agenda of the BPI cannot take precedence over the protection of consumers," he said.

Martin Warner, co-founder of Technology of Tomorrow 08 (www.tot2008.com) said that a lot depended on how the proposals actually work in practice

"The internet has presented challenges to content providers in a variety of sectors. Today's deal is a major breakthrough for consumers and the record industry, though many challenges still remain on how this is going to work out in practice and be policed," said Warner.

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