About 71% of New Zealanders aged between 15 – 30 would stop downloading illegal content if their internet service provider warned them against it, a survey  has revealed.

This figure was up 1% on the same survey commissioned by NZFACT last year. The questions and structure of the survey remained the same, as did the research panel.

Screen Director’s Guild executive director Anna Cahill said the survey's findings demonstrated a need for stronger legislation against copyright theft. “New Zealand artists and audiences stand to lose unless the government strengthens the proposal to build a framework for stopping online copyright infringement.

“The fact is this remains an issue about New Zealanders’ livelihoods. The screen industry provides 15,000 jobs and is worth $2.7 billion locally. Its continued growth is dependent upon a legal regime that values creative work.”

The survey also showed 20% of respondents had downloaded illegal content, of that 65% of people did not feel guilty about it, but 62% said they would probably stop downloading illegal content if their internet connection was threatened by their ISP.

NZFACT executive director Tony Eaton said ISPs had a crucial role to play in preventing copyright from being breached.

“ISPs, as our partners in this online market, play a vital part in reaching out to their customers about the importance of copyright, and enforcing their own terms and conditions with regards to customers who repeatedly engage in online infringement.”

Mr Eaton said he was extremely pleased with the result of the survey. He said the respondents were from various parts of the country and showed a good cross-section of New Zealand’s youth. “It shows that education initiatives are reaching the target audience,” he said.

Lowndes Jordan partner Rick Shera said the NZFACT survey was consistent with figures around the world. Mr Shera said many people surfing the internet and downloading content in their homes do not necessary know they are breaching copyright laws, and would be willing to stop if they were alerted to the problem.

Mr Shera said the film studios or record labels affected would contact the ISP with an infringement notice, alerting them to the fact that illegal content had been downloaded. The ISP would then use an internet protocol (IP) address to locate the users and then either issue them with a notice or a copy of the original infringement notice.

But Mr Shera said the industry was still working out how to enforce such notices. A current case being held in a federal court in Sydney could have huge implications for the entertainment industry both in Australia, New Zealand and further abroad.

The case between Australian ISP iiNet and 34 claimants, including US and Australia film studios such as Warner Bro and Village Roadshow, has been adjourned until November 2, as several witnesses were not available until then.

The case involves thousands of infringement notices that were sent to iiNet regarding its users illegal downloading of content. The claimants have alleged that iiNet encouraged and promoted its users to breach copyright laws. iiNet has strongly denied the allegations and defended its position.

The case could have far-reaching affects if the jury finds in favour of the claimants, and would hopefully provide some clarity on whether ISPs have a responsibility to ensure its users are not breaching copyright laws.