Here at ITM, we’re always paying attention to news pieces about file sharing and online downloading laws because we try to stay abreast of all emerging media platforms and trends, and also because we’re aware that such file sharing practices, legal and otherwise, are undeniably here to stay.

In recent weeks we’ve reported on some harsh new measures being enacted to prevent illegal downloads such as internet bans and even more extreme measures like slapping US grandmothers with exorbitant fines. The latest bit of juice to emerge in the war for downloads has hit this week, with UK popstar Lily Allen hitting out at file sharers, claiming that they’re stunting the growth of young artists.

Swapping her hard partying antics for some business talk, Lily took to her blog to extol the evils of online downloading, slamming both the culprits at home as well as renowned artists like Radiohead who’ve endorsed the free distribution of music.

“I think music piracy is having a dangerous effect on British music, but some really rich and successful artists like Nick Mason from Pink Floyd and Ed O’Brien from Radiohead don’t seem to think so,” she wrote. “These guys from huge bands said file sharing music is fine. It probably is fine for them. They do sell-out arena tours and have the biggest Ferrari collections in the world. For new talent though, file sharing is a disaster as it’s making it harder and harder for new acts to emerge.”

Clearly unnerved by what the singer sees as the casual devaluing of the music industry, Allen continued to vent on her blog, speaking about the crippling debt facing artists who can’t physically sell their records. “You don’t start out in music with the Ferraris. Instead you get a huge debt from your record company, which you spend years working your arse off to repay. When you manage to get a contract, all those pretty videos and posters advertising your album have to be paid for and as the artist, you have to pay for them. I’ve only just finished paying off all the money I owe my record company,” she said. “I’m lucky that I’ve been successful and managed to pay it back, but not everyone’s so lucky. You might not care about this, but the more difficult it is for new artists to make it, the less new artists you’ll see and the more British music will be nothing but puppets paid for by Simon Cowell. Now, obviously I’m going to benefit from fighting piracy, but I think without fighting it, British music is going to suffer.”

While we can understand, and empathise with Lily Allen and record labels facing the widespread storm of file sharing, we think there’s certainly merit downloading culture. Take an act like Midnight Juggernauts for instance. They began life as a relatively low-key electro band from Melbourne, yet with the proliferation of their early material on blogs and forums, they managed to book European tours before releasing a full album. Another case is Girl Talk, the mash-up master who distributed his most recent album, Feed The Animals, for a ‘name-your-price’ cost online, circumventing potential label dramas for clearing samples and getting his material in the hands of eager fans and subsequently securing demand for international touring. By the same token, isn’t Lily Allen’s rise to prominence due in part to her distribution of free material online? Seems like a bit of the pot calling the kettle black, don’t it?

Got an opinion on the pros and cons of online file sharing? Is it good for our artists to get their work out there to new fans that they might not have reached without the internet? Or do you agree with Ms. Allen and think that illegal downloads are slowly but surely killing the music business? Leave us a comment in the box below and have your voice heard!