As the government rethinks penalties for illegal downloaders, a new political party is campaigning for laws to keep pace with technology, Kevin Anderson talks to its leader

The following correction was printed in the Guardian's Corrections and clarifications column, Monday 31 August 2009

The article below was incorrect in saying that the EU had extended copyright to 95 years from the present 50 for performers and sound recordings. The European commission did propose 95 years, but the European parliament amended it to 70. To take effect, this still needs approval from the council of ministers, some of whom oppose an extension.

Equating the freedom to share files non-commercially with freedom from excessive surveillance, freedom of speech and freedom of information, a new political party, the Pirate Party, has launched in the UK. "We are campaigning for laws that keep pace with technology," said Andrew Robinson, the party's leader.

In the past, libraries were set up to share but now technology allows engagement in what Robinson calls "altruistic sharing". The party is fighting for what it calls a "public right of access to our culture".

The movie and music industry see the issue differently. The estimated 7 million UK filesharers cost the music industry £200m each year, according to figures from the BPI. The government has determined the future is Digital Britain, and the report proposed new powers for the communications regulator, Ofcom, to demand data on filesharers from ISPs to cut illegal downloads by 70%.

Access denied

This week, however, the government announced plans with harsher penalties for persistent filesharers. Ofcom was to review means to curb illegal filesharing, but the government said the process would take too long, with measures not in place until 2012. "The government has now reached the view that, if action was deemed necessary, this might be too long to wait given the pressure put on the creative industries by piracy," according to a press release by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.

The government is considering requiring ISPs to block certain sites, slow download speeds or even temporarily cutting off internet access for repeat offenders.

The filesharing war is entering a new phase. Music and movie companies are pressing forward after legal victories against Bittorrent tracker the Pirate Bay and successful suits with six- and seven-figure penalties against individual filesharers in the US.

This next phase is moving from the courtroom to the court of public opinion and public policy. The Pirate Party wants to add a voice to the copyright discussion to counter what it sees as a one-sided debate dominated by industry lobbyists.

Ironically, the success of the creative industries in prosecuting the founders of the Pirate Bay raised awareness of the Piratpartiet, the Swedish political group that inspired not only the UK political party but parties and organisations in 34 countries around the world.

The Piratpartiet launched its website on 1 January 2006 and had the necessary signatures for official recognition a month later. By June of that year, the party had managed to insert the issue of filesharing into the national political debate.

To gain a seat in the Swedish Parliament, the party had to poll at least 4% but only managed 0.63%. Even without electoral success, the party became the third largest political party outside of parliament in its first year.

The Pirate Bay trial not only boosted the Piratpartiet's profile abroad but also helped it at home, allowing it to win 7.1% of the vote and one of Sweden's 18 seats at the European parliament.

It's good to talk

The UK Pirate Party gained recognition in July and has been overwhelmed by the interest since its launch. The party does not want to abolish copyright but it needs to be balanced and fair, Robinson claims.

"At the moment, big businesses is saying that we steal handbags, and we say let's talk about what copyright is about," he says. The original purpose of copyright, created by the Statute of Anne of 1709, was to encourage the creation of artistic works by granting a right to copy for 14 years. Copyright for written works now stands at life plus 70 years, and copyright for sound recordings is 50 years after the recording is made, or 50 years after publication. The EU has extended copyright to 95 years for performers and sound recordings.

The term of copyright has been marching forward but along the way, the purpose of it has been lost, according to Robinson. Instead of encouraging artistic creation, modern copyright has made certain companies cultural gatekeepers, he argues, adding, "copyright is serving the needs of music labels, not the needs of the public, the public domain or even the artists".

Celebrity influence

Robinson believes copyright reform advocates are outgunned not only by powerful lobbyists but by stars and entertainment executives with access to members of government. He cited copyright campaigner Sir Cliff Richard playing host to Tony Blair in Barbados. It has also been suggested that after having dinner with Hollywood mogul and filesharing opponent David Geffen, business secretary Lord Mandelson ordered new plans to be drawn up that could lead to persistent filesharers having their internet access cut off. However, a government spokesperson has denied Mandelson discussed online piracy in his meeting with Geffen and said there was no connection between that meeting and the government's new proposals.

While a call to legalise non-commercial filesharing is getting the most attention, the party believes freedom to share is part of a larger set of freedoms, including freedom from excessive surveillance, freedom of movement and freedom of information, to increase government transparency and accountability. And in addition to opening up a debate on copyright, Robinson also wants to ask: "How much CCTV is enough? How much government snooping on what we do on the internet is too much?"

The party hopes to get many candidates on the ballot in the next election, which must be held before June 2010. The Pirate Party in Sweden has a strong youth wing, and the UK party hopes to get a boost from young voters accustomed to sharing music.

It's unlikely any of its candidates will enter parliament, but Robinson believes the party doesn't need to win to gain influence. They can join with other parties to become king makers. The Green party doesn't have a member of parliament but all three major political parties now agree on the importance of environmental issues, says Robinson.

"We hope to show that a certain amount of the population agree with our issues."

The government's filesharing plans

The government has confirmed a streamlined plan for aggressive action against illegal filesharing, saying that previous plans would take too long to implement "given the pressure put on the creative industries by piracy".

The new plan calls for the secretary of state to be given the power to direct the communications regulator Ofcom to implement technical measures against illegal peer-to-peer filesharing.

Cutting off access was ruled out in the government's Digital Britain report released in June. In the report, the then communications minister Lord Carter said illegal filesharers should receive letters warning them their activities could leave them open to prosecution. If that failed to reduce piracy by at least 70%, Ofcom would have the power to call on internet service providers to introduce "technical measures". The most draconian penalty considered at the time was to slow down a persistent filesharer's broadband connection.

Ofcom was going to evaluate possible technical measures, but the government said that would mean they wouldn't be ready until 2012 at the earliest. The music and movie industries have lobbied hard for tougher measures to be introduced sooner.

"We've been listening carefully to responses to the consultation this far, and it's become clear there are widespread concerns that the plans as they stand could delay action, impacting unfairly upon rights holders," said the minister for Digital Britain, Stephen Timms.

Geoff Taylor, CEO of the music industry trade group BPI, said that digital piracy posed "a real threat to the UK's creative industries" that needed urgent action. "Today is a step forward that should help the legal digital market to grow for consumers," he said.

While the creative industries will be pleased, internet service providers are not only being asked to police users for illegal filesharing, but will also bear part of the costs of enforcement.

Digital rights groups called the move, a "kneejerk reaction". Jim Killock, the executive director of the Open Rights Group, said: "Suspension of internet access would restrict people's fundamental right to freedom of expression. It would also fly in the face of the government's policy of universal broadband access."

He also accused the government of making the decision based on "private conversations" and will be lodging an official complaint "about the shoddiness of this consultation process".

Meanwhile, tech-savvy Labour MP Tom Watson (pictured left) wrote on his blog that he was disappointed with the proposals, adding that they would "lead to accusations that the government has been captured by the big lobby operations of powerful rightsholders".