Creative content developers, Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and the UK Government have teamed up to launch a partnership called Creative Content UK, to promote legal download in the country.
The initiative aims to raise awareness about the availability of legal online content and copyright infringement issues related to illegal downloads.
As part of the initiative, Creative Content UK will launch an education awareness campaign before Spring 2015 to promote legal downloads.
Following which, the ISPs will send four warnings to subscribers per year whose accounts are suspected of being used for piracy.
Subscribers will be advised that their accounts could have been illegally used for file sharing, and offer advice on where to find legitimate sources of entertainment content.
The Government will provide £3.5m to fund the education awareness aspect of the campaign.
UK Business Secretary Vince Cable said: "The creative industries in the UK are one of our brilliant global success stories.
"Yet too often that content is open to abuse by some who don’t play by the rules. That is why we are working with industry to ensure that intellectual property rights are understood and respected."
"Education is at the heart of this drive so people understand that piracy isn’t a victimless crime – but actually causes business to fail, harms the industry and costs jobs."
UK Culture Secretary Sajid Javid said: "The Creative Sector is a key driver of the UK economy contributing £8m to the UK economy every hour and underpinning over 1.5m jobs."
"Copyright is the foundation on which the Creative industries stand and we must ensure it remains strong and continues to support the growth of the sector."
"The alert programme shows industry working together to develop solutions which support the long-term health of the UK’s creative industries. It will play a central role in raising awareness of copyright and pointing people toward legal ways to access content and I welcome this effort."
Partners of the Creative Content UK include the Motion Picture Association (MPA), the BPI (British Recorded Music Industry) while it is backed by BBC, Equity, the Film Distributors’ Association, ITV, the Independent Film & Television Alliance (IFTA), the Musicians’ Union, Pact the Premier League, the Publishers Association and UK Music.
Four major internet service providers including BT, Sky Broadband, TalkTalk and Virgin Media have joined the initiative with other ISPs are expected to sign up later.
Motion Picture Association EMEA president and MD, Chris Marcich, said: "It is fantastic that the UK creative community and ISPs have come together in partnership to address online copyright infringement and raise awareness about the multitude of legitimate online services available to consumers.
"This is just one piece of the overall approach to tackling illegal online infringement and promoting the importance of copyright. This will enable consumers to receive the best possible user experience and sustains the UK’s creative community and economy, incentivising the creation of new movies and other creative content."
