Fact Sheet - Public Awareness Campaigns

For further information or jpegs of any of the following campaigns, please contact IFPI Communications on Tel: +44 (0)20 7878 7900, Email: info@ifpi.org

TACKLING THE MYTH OF FREE MUSIC

7 October, 2004: Public awareness of the issues surrounding internet piracy has come a long way in the past year. The development of legal online services and the fight against online piracy have become the stuff of daily debate, in the media, in government and in ordinary households.

Today at least 7 out 10 people surveyed in Europe know that swapping copyrighted music on the internet without permission is illegal - that is undoubtedly a much higher level of awareness than one or two years ago.

A number of events have sparked this public debate - litigation against illegal file-sharers in the US and Europe; "warning campaigns" across the world; and a host of other information and education tackling the myths surrounding "free music".

Awareness campaigns around the world have focused on three key points: explaining the illegality of unauthorised online music file-sharing; tracking the progress and development of the new legal online services; and demonstrating how online copyright theft hurts people working across the music sector.

Projects have included music coalition websites, public relations and advertising campaigns, university and school projects and instant messages sent directly to people using unauthorised services.

Multi-media, PR and advertising campaigns

• An alliance of music sector groups launched www.pro-music.org in the summer of 2003, a website aimed at promoting legitimate online music services and confronting the myths surrounding online music piracy. The site is supported by six international organisations representing musicians, publishers, performers, artists, major and independent record companies, producers and retailers across the music industry. Pro-music is the largest existing directory of legitimate music sites around the world today.
  
  
• 2004 saw the launch of national versions of the Pro-music site in Germany, Italy and France. Austria has today launched www.pro-music.at for the Austrian market. Other countries have either actively marketed the international site in their territories or are due to launch their own national sites.
  
  
• Promusicfrance.com was launched at Midem in January by the French Minister of Culture, JJ Aillagon and a coalition of partners across the music industry. This was followed by a Promusicfrance debate at the 'Printemps de Bourges' Festival with the coalition members and journalists, supported by 15000 promusicfrance.com "postcards" distributed during the festival. The site has also launched a branded 30 second clip, "The Drummer" about the effect of illegal file-sharing on artists
  
  
• Many other countries have launched separate multimedia campaigns. Canada's 'Keep Music Coming' campaign, for example, uses the web, ads, and CD inserts to inform young Canadians that when people buy music, they help artists create more music and give new artists a chance to be heard.
  
  
• The 'Get It Right!' educational campaign in the Netherlands - involving the Ministry of Justice and representatives of copyright industries - aims to help teachers introduce the subject of copyright to their 14-15 year old pupils by taking them through the process by which books, newspapers, film, websites and music are created.
  
  
• The Singaporean 'Don't let the Music Die' video has been distributed to almost 200 educational institutions, and clips from the video broadcast on television. Singapore's largest broadcaster has also run television and radio commercials as part of the 'Keep the Music Alive' campaign.
  
  
• Other consumer advertising has included:
  • France with their 'Finger' ad entitled "Free music has a price"
  • Japan, where five other industry groups joined the recording industry's 'Respect Our Music' ad.
  • Belgium with their 'Please Don't Steal Music. Just because you can doesn't mean you should.' Ads.
  • Canada with two recent advertising spots ' Virus' and 'Jimmy's Room'.

Information to students and employees

• IFPI's Copyright Use and Security Guides were mailed to thousands of companies, government departments and educational institutions in 21 countries from early 2003. They call on administrators of computer networks within government, private companies and educational establishments to advise employees and students against copyright misuse on computer systems. The guides advise these groups of the security and legal risks they run when copyright material is copied and transmitted without permission. The distribution of the brochures to academic institutions was the start of a greater co-operation between the music industry and universities around the world.
  
  
• Many schools and universities have taken steps to discourage illicit file-swapping activity, imposing bandwidth limits, sending warning notices, using filtering and other technical tools, and disconnecting users that trade copyrighted music unlawfully. In Italy, schools have been requested by their regional educational authorities to adopt copyright protection measures.
  
  
• Most recently, universities in the US have begun giving courses in copyright law and many have begun to offer legitimate music services along with cable TV, free newspapers, and other perks of campus life when students start university.
  
  
• There are several awareness programmes in European schools and Universities. In Italy the Italian Ministry for Education will launch a programme to educate students on the importance of copyright alongside the music, film and software industries. In France romusicfrance will take part in a one-year national state programme called "Tour de France of Colleges" on the theme of "Fair use of the internet".

Instant messaging: reaching illegal file-swappers directly

• People illegally sharing music files online can also be reached directly. For several months the recording industry has been sending instant messages over peer-to-peer systems to users who appear to be offering unlicensed music. These warn users that they should not engage in copyright infringement and explain why using lawful copies of music is so important.
  
  
• Since April 2003, in the US, the RIAA has sent approximately 31 million instant message warnings to peer-to-peer users in the US. Record industry groups in nine other countries - Australia, Austria, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Japan, Netherlands, Sweden and the UK - have sent more than 8 million instant messages to peer-to-peer users since August 2003.
  
  
• Following are samples of the instant messages sent:
  • Austria: ACHTUNG! Sie bieten geschützte Musikfiles ohne Zustimmung der Rechteinhaber über eine Internet-Tauschbörse an…
  • Australia: INTERNET FILE SHARING IS THEFT. IT ROBS ARTISTS AND SONGWRITERS OF INCOME AND REDUCES THE AVAILABILITY OF NEW MUSIC…
  • Canada: WARNING: It appears that you are offering copyright music to others from your computer.