Film theft in the UK - Future of Copyright

7 Recommendations
The analyses in the previous chapters point to
one important conclusion: film piracy in the UK
is a major concern and demands immediate
attention. Although the industry has been
implementing strategies against piracy for
many years, resources are limited and the
industry must depend on assistance from the
State and its enforcement agencies. There is no
single magic bullet that will eradicate piracy.
If anything, the little reliable empirical evidence
that currently exists on the scale and impact of
the problem only serves to suggest an industry
that has some work to do in order to prepare
for the rapidly changing digital entertainment
environment already upon us.
The film industry is used to a structured and
controlled approach to the distribution of its
own content, with a high degree of power over
each facet of the value chain. However, this is a
position that is now under threat. Moreover,
there is a fear about the emergence of
potential new ‘gatekeepers’ in the value chain,
such as information technology companies and
consumer electronics manufacturers. This is
exacerbated by a legal system that fails to quite
recognise the full social and economical
implications of copyright infringement.
Although there has been reform, much still
needs to be done.
The following is a list of recommendations for
the UK Government, film industry,
Government-backed and other film sector
stakeholders such as the UK Film Council and
FACT. It is anticipated that the Government
recommendations contained in this report will
be evolved in partnership with the
Government’s recently formed Creative
Industries Forum on Intellectual Property.
The UK Government
In the short term
1 Extend the legal concept of ‘exemplary
damages’ to cases of copyright infringement.
Exemplary damages are paid as a punitive
measure rather than compensating for actual
loss in cases where, simply put, there has been
some form of malicious intent behind the
actions. Given that much organised piracy is
carried out with a clear intent to reap a reward
from another’s loss, the extension of the
principle makes perfect jurisprudential sense.
Such a move will act as a disincentive by
considerably increasing the financial risk to
organised piracy. It would also bring UK law in
line with Ireland and several other
Commonwealth territories.
(See Chapter 5, sub-heading: ‘Copyright
protection in the United Kingdom’.)
2 Make a provision for rights holders to be able
to claim pre-established or statutory damages.
This is particularly appropriate where it is
difficult for a rights owner to prove the scale
or extent of its losses (which also includes
disclosing often confidential information). The
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