Digital piracy poses a threat to Britain’s creative industries and to their ability to nurture new talent, Lord Mandelson and Ben Bradshaw said today.

Visiting the BRIT School in Croydon, Business Secretary Lord Mandelson said it was vital for jobs and growth that Britain’s world-renowned creative industries are given the chance to flourish. He said the Government welcomes the current debate on digital piracy, including views put forward by the music and film industries, consumer groups, unions, ISPs and musicians themselves.

Lord Mandelson said:

“Downloading somebody’s work without paying for it – whether it be music, film or computer games – is not a victimless act. It poses a genuine threat to our creative industries and to the livelihoods of talented, hard-working people striving to get a foothold in them. It’s essential that the voice of young artists is also heard.

“In the end this problem will be solved not simply by new laws but by new approaches to doing business. We believe that temporary account suspension as a last resort, in the most serious cases, is worth considering to allow these new business models to develop.”

He added that the Government welcomed new commercial offers like Spotify or Vodafone’s DRM-free music deal that give consumers a range of legal choices.

Culture Secretary Ben Bradshaw said:

“Britain’s got talent – and the BRIT School is a shining example of that. But if we want the next generation of musicians, filmmakers, developers or designers to succeed, we need to address urgently this threat to the sustainability of our creative industries. Unlawful file sharing costs businesses that invest in new talent millions each year.

“Tomorrow’s stars are born digital. We need the industry to match their ingenuity and devise new business models that work in the digital age. It is right that artists are rewarded for the time, energy and creativity they invest in producing something the public wants. And if we are to retain our creative edge in the long term and enjoy the cultural benefits that brings, we need innovation to allow that talent to shine.”

Lord Mandelson and Mr Bradshaw praised the work of the BRIT School providing young people with the grounding and skills they will need to look for careers in the creative industries.

Video

Press notice
Read the full press notice here.

Images
To view images of the visit to BRIT School (and for online journalists to download and re-use), see the Flickr album here.

Blog
For more on the development of our policies on Digital Britain, including a discussion of the government’s approach to the file-sharing issue, visit the Digital Britain Forum blog.

Consultation
To have your say on proposed filesharing legislation, see the Consulation on Legislation to Address Illicit P2P File-Sharing. It closes on 29 September 2009.

Speech
Minister for Digital Britain, Stephen Timms, spoke about the importance of Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) earlier.  Read the full speech here.