Needless to say, the role of the internet service providers in combating online piracy was a hot topic at the Annual General Meeting of record label trade body the BPI in London yesterday. Though, with the stand off between the record labels and some of the net firms seemingly relaxing – in particular with Virgin Media agreeing to become, at the very least, an educator of its customers regarding copyright laws on the net – there was more optimism in this debate than in the past.
According to Billboard, SonyBMG VP Comms Emma Pike said during one of those panel discussion type things: "We're at a really interesting point. Over the last few years, there has been a standoff between ISPs and the industry. But that is starting to change". BPI vice chair and Dramatico chief Mike Batt meanwhile, added: "We all hope that they [ISPs] will fall in line. We would like the user to continue to buy music cheaply. The operative word being 'buy'. All parties want to find the right balance".
Concluding on the topic – and referencing possibly controversial proposals within the industry (so far resisted by the ISPs) that frequent file sharers be cut off by their net providers, BPI chairman Tony Wadsworth said the industry needed to keep up the pressure on the net firms, but to not lose focus on the wider picture too. The former EMI UK chief remarked: "We're not against digital possibilities. The only issue is that we have to be paid for [the content]. We need to keep our eyes on the prize. The prize is not disconnection. All we want is some good commercial music markets in the digital space".