French law would make file-sharing cheaper, easier

France is to consider a draft law this week that would legalize file-sharing of music and films by consumers in return for a flat licensing fee.

The entertainment industry is preparing a massive lobby against the law, saying it would undo years of anti-piracy work and leave artists destitute.

On Wednesday, the law goes before a parliamentary commission for cultural affairs and the commission for economic affairs.

Originally conceived as a revamp of copyright law to tackle concerns about piracy, the law was amended after pressure by consumer groups to allow unlimited peer-to-peer downloading for a flat fee of a few euros a month.

Several French court decisions on illegal downloading have absolved internet users in file-sharing cases or imposed very light sentences, setting in place a body of case law that paved the way for more liberalized consumer downloading.

The French scheme would be an alternative to legal downloading services for music and movies that charge fees for each download.

Music, film and television industries are opposing the law, but point out it is at a draft stage and can still be overturned.

"We are concerned and monitoring the situation closely, but it has a long way to go before it becomes law," Francine Cunningham of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), said, according to Reuters.

"The 'compulsory licence' would replace the fast-growing legitimate online market in France by an 'average' payment which would by no means remunerate the creation of music and investments made by the recording industry," the IFPI said.

Consumer groups in France have backed the law, saying it frees consumers from threat of legal action over downloading and provides a legitimate, affordable way of sharing files.

French cinema and music trading associations, rock stars such as Johnny Hallyday and companies such as Vivendi, which owns Universal Music and has a stake in NBC Universal, have spoken out against the law.

Lawyers for the film and TV industries say the law may contravene the European Union's intellectual property laws.

In December, the French government put forward a measure to clamp down on users sharing pirated material over the internet by introducing stiffer punishments such as fines up to 300,000 euros ($413,580) and prison sentences up to three years.

But in December, members of both the ruling conservatives and the opposition Socialists threw the law off course with an amendment to legalize file-sharing in exchange for a flat licensing fee.

French Culture Minister Renaud Donnedieu de Vabres faces questions on the draft law beginning on Wednesday.