FAC 'sides with consumer on downloading'

Popstars including Robbie Williams, Billy Bragg and Blur drummer Dave Rowntree have expressed their support for fans who download music.

The musicians attended the first meeting of the Featured Artists Coalition (FAC), which discussed matters including illegal downloading and the continuing dispute between the PRS and YouTube.

Bragg told The Independent:"What I said at the meeting was that the record industry in Britain is still going down the road of criminalising our audience for downloading illegal MP3s.

"If we follow the music industry down that road, we will be doing nothing more than being part of a protectionist effort. It's like trying to put toothpaste back in the tube.

"Artists should own their own rights and they should decide when their music should be used for free, or when they should have payment."

He added that the FAC wanted to tell Lord Carter, who called for downloaders to be brought to justice, that they as artists supported "the audience, the consumer".