THE UK GOVERNMENT has announced that it is to drop plans to introduce a ban on websites hosting copyright-infringing material, saying the scheme is too cumbersome to be workable.

The plans were proposed in last year’s Digital Economy Act in the hopes of tackling online piracy and illegal filesharing, however the process of blocking websites have been deemed too complicated upon consideration. The government has indicated it will now explore other methods of protecting copyrighted music, television and film material online.

Internet Service Providers (ISPs) had objected to the suggestion that copy-right holders could demand they block access to certain sites, the BBC reports.

The UK’s Business secretary Vince Cable said that people will also now be allowed to make copies of CDs and DVDs for personal use – relaxing the current law that makes it illegal for someone to make duplicates of media files that they own in order to use them on various digital devices, the Guardian.

“A lot of this has to do with consumer freeedom. We need to have a legal framework that supports consumer use rather than treat it as regrettable. We can’t say that businesses should embrace technology but say to consumers they can’t use technology for products they have paid for,” Cable said.