Feargal Sharkey has told the annual conference of the Internet Service Providers' Association that he hopes there will soon be more progress in the collaboration between the record companies and net firms regarding the tackling of online piracy and the introduction of more licensed digital music services.
Sharkey, in his guise as CEO of recently established music business organisation UK Music, was speaking at the net provider's annual bash to encourage the six ISPs who entered into a Memorandum Of Understanding with record label trade body the BPI earlier this year to continue working with the record companies and the wider music industry on anti-piracy and digital service projects.
According to Music Week, an ISPA spokesman says both Sharkey and ISP reps at the London conference were optimistic that "some kind of agreement between rightholders and ISPs can be reached", adding that: "everyone wants to work together to make legal online models work".