Kiwi internet users have a love affair with illegal downloading and any changes to copyright law will fail to deter many, a survey has revealed.

A study of more than 1000 New Zealand internet users aged between 18 and 70 found every respondent had downloaded copyrighted material at least once in the past year.

Of those, 82 per cent copied music, while half downloaded software and 35 per cent movies.

Nearly one in five respondents said nothing could deter them from illegal downloading. One said attempts to legislate against illegal downloading were like "trying to stop an avalanche with a stick".

The online survey, commissioned by TelstraClear and completed by Baseline Consultancy in early June, was ordered as part of the telecommunications company's response to Government proposals to replace Section 92a of the Copyright Act.

The company had refused to support an industry code that could have seen internet customers disconnected without proof of copyright abuse.

Under the replacement section 92a proposed by an Economic Development Ministry working group last month, rights-holders could get service providers to send out warnings and "cease and desist" letters on their behalf.

Jordan Carter, deputy executive director of lobby group Internet NZ, said the results showed advertising that labelled actions as piracy or theft weren't working. "It's a tough nut to crack when most people think that what they're doing isn't wrong."

Mr Carter said the group advocated for infringement notices to be sent to liable parties, rather than terminating their internet connections. Termination would not deter people, he said.

TelstraClear spokesman Mathew Bolland said the survey showed that disconnecting users would not help to prevent copyright abuse.

"It just isn't possible to draft a law to solve copyright abuse," he said. "We support copyright but no-one had bothered asking New Zealanders what they do and why. "

He said the survey showed Kiwis were willing to pay for products, but they were frustrated with supply.

The study concluded that timely distribution of content at a reasonable price would have more impact in stopping illegal downloading.

KEY FINDINGS



Findings from a survey commissioned by TelstraClear survey of 1048 New Zealand internet users aged between 18 and 70.

Kiwis were asked what copyrighted content they copied or downloaded, how often, what regard they had for copyright and what would deter them from accessing it illegally.



* 46 per cent of the households interviewed had peer-to-peer file sharing software on their computer.



* 48 per cent believed the prospect of being caught by police and fined was the most effective legal tool in trying to deter copyright infringers.



* Disconnection of broadband for repeat offending was thought effective by 43 per cent.



* But for more than 50 per cent neither measure was significant enough to stop illegal downloading.



* Music was by far the most copied content (82 per cent), followed by software (49 per cent), movies (35 per cent) and games (31 per cent).



*Although content copying was widespread, the majority claimed to do it only occasionally.



* Just under a third (32 per cent) claimed to copy music more than once a month while 23 per cent used iTunes, a legal online source.



* A key driver for users who illegally access copyright content was a strong belief that the current business model used to distribute entertainment was slow, inefficient and expensive. Legal content was available too late and used too many middle men forcing retail prices up.



*At 38 per cent, retail pricing was the most common reason for copying music.



* Another strong theme was that Kiwis expected to access content at the same time as other parts of the world. The internet had cut the distance barrier New Zealand had traditionally struggled with in connecting with the rest of the world and had created a `now' attitude in the demand for content.





