Anyone who is found to have illegally downloaded material will be sent an alert offering advice on where to find legitimate sources of entertainment online.
But these messages will be capped for a year and there will be no penalties for offenders. It's a far cry from what the entertainment industry originally called for.
When the controversial Digital Economy Act was introduced in the final days of the Labour government in 2010, it included measures to cut off people's internet connections for repeated misuse.
This new three-year scheme is a compromise.
Latest industry figures suggest nearly a quarter of all content consumed online is illegally downloaded, including more than a billion music tracks within a year.
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done according to the law
limited
people who act illegally
it's very different from
causing people to disagree and argue
(noun) improper use
a settlement; a situation where people on all sides of an argument reduce their demands so that they can reach an agreement