If the Featured Artists Coalition thought it represented all musicians’ views on intellectual property policy and digital distribution, it can think again.
Lily Allen has martialled a rival band, including Gary Barlow and Bat For Lashes against the FAC’s opposition to suspending illegal downloaders’ net connections.
— The FAC was formed last year by the likes of Billy Bragg, Radiohead and Blur’s Dave Rowntree to lobby for a fairer deal for artists as digital deals are struck. But, after the Department for Business Innovation & Skills intervened in Digital Britain to propose quicker action and perhaps suspending freeloaders’ service, the group issued a statement decrying “a mindset so far removed from that of the general public and music consumer that it seems an extraordinarily negative document”.
— As we reported last week, Allen took to her MySpace to oppose that view: “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