In the August issue of GQ U2 manager Paul McGuinness talks about saving the music industry through a subscription based music service and notably, a clampdown on illegal filesharing by targeting Internet Service Providers (ISPs).  Quick to defend himself against the accusation that he might be whining about “fewer limos for rich rock stars”, McGuinness believes that ISPs should share their profits with the music industry since they are the conduit by which people share the music.

Obviously the idea isn’t without precedent – there are examples across the world of ISPs getting tough on filesharing including here in Ireland in 2009, when the country’s largest ISP Eircom blocked its users from accessing The Pirate Bay. Then, earlier this year, the Irish high court mediated a three-strikes-and-your-out agreement between Eircom and the major record labels. Since coming into force (in pilot form) in May the three-strikes ruling has thrown up  noticeably few cases. The type of heavy internet user / “pirate” the ruling is aimed at would surely be blogging, tweeting and commenting all over the net about being slung off their contract?  However, a quick Google search on the topic returns a very sparse response.

Why so? Well I believe it’s because Eircom, far from having the “bonanza” profits McGuinness thinks, are either unable or unwilling to commit the resources to police this. After all, the company are in the middle of shedding 1,200 staff and all ISP profits are falling due to competition and the recession. McGuinness claims that ISPs made money off the back of artists since free music has encouraged internet usage and therefore grown contract subscriptions. However couldn’t it just as easily be argued that ISPs have had to pay for this through infrastructural development? An infrastructure which the music industry fully take advantage of.