According to draft proposals contained in a green paper seen by The Times newspaper, the UK government wants to compel internet service providers (ISPs) to take action against internet subscribers who download pirated material.

The Times says that the green paper suggests that the government favours a so-called three strikes system, where suspected copyright infringers face an emailed warning for a first offence, a suspension for a repeat offence, and termination of their internet service if they are caught three times.

In December 2006, the UK government-commissioned Gowers Review of Intellectual Property recommended that ISPs and rights holders reach agreement on ways to share information about people who infringe copyright on the internet. If they cannot, said the Review, the government should intervene and set its own rules.

The IFPI, which represents record companies, welcomed the news that ISPs might be required to play a bigger role in combating online music piracy in the UK.

"The news is a boost to the campaign for ISP cooperation that has wide support from across the creative industries," the IFPI said in a statement.

But the government’s draft proposals will require a number of legal problems and ethical concerns to be overcome, including issues about data privacy and internet monitoring.

Last month the European Union’s top court ruled that member states are not required to lay down an obligation to provide personal data to IP owners to allow copyright owners to launch civil proceedings against alleged infringers.

The case began when a Spanish industry organization that represents producers and publishers of music asked a Madrid court to order communications company Telefónica to reveal the identities and addresses of people believed to be downloading music illegally on the KaZaa peer-to-peer network.