On Tuesday, Britain announced the beginning of a great fight against online piracy, with regard to both music and movies. The six largest ISPs in England have come together with the Government in an attempt to "clamp down" on illegal downloading.

It was estimated that, throughout last year, some 6.5 million citizens have downloaded unauthorized content; if things continue this way, the music industry will record losses of over £1 billion in the next five years.

The first action that is to taken consists in sending warnings to Internet users, informing them that their illegal online activity has been spotted and that their behavior is being monitored.

The agreement between the Government’s business department and BT, Virgin Media, Orange, Tiscali, BSkyB and Carphone Warehouse will soon be signed and the plan will be started.

The six ISPs will develop legal file-sharing services, so that users can continue performing the same activities, but in a safe environment. An optional feature may be added, that would enable customers to download unlimited music, for an extra monthly fee.

No information has been released yet regarding those who will continue to abuse their Internet connections; however, ideas such as the "three strikes" law or additional fees for heavy users have been going around.

The UK Film Council also showed great enthusiasm for the announcement, considering it to be an important first step.

This plan is not by any means a local one; similar Internet copyright infringement related laws are expected to be issued in France, Australia, Denmark, Japan and New Zealand.