Government splits costs of policing illegal file sharing

The Government has split the costs of tackling online copyright infringement between rights holders and internet service providers (ISPs) at a ratio of 75:25 respectively.

The decision applies to both the notification and appeals process. The Department of Business, Innovation and Skills (Bis) also said that consumers accused of copyright infringement won't initially be charged for using the appeals process, but a fee could be introduced at a later date.

Ed Vaizey, Minister for Communications, said: “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.”

However the Internet Service Providers Association (Ispa) criticised the move to force ISPs to pay part of the bill.

Nicholas Lansman, Ispa secretary general said: "Ispa has consistently argued for the 'beneficiary pays' principle and is disappointed with today's announcement. Full cost recovery for serious law enforcement cases is an established rule and Ispa sees no reason why it should not be the case here.”

The Open Rights Group (Org) also warned that forcing ISPs to bear some of the costs would lead to higher costs for internet access as companies pass on the charges.

The Government will now notify the European Commission before its decision is introduced in Parliament as a Statutory Order.

Ofcom said that it is still consulting organisations on the setup of an independent appeals body and it would announce progress when it publishes its Online Copyright Infringement Initial Obligations Code this autumn. This code will implement the notifications process and come into force in the first half of 2011.