Downloading has a multi-billion pound impact on the economy.
New research shows that large-scale unauthorised downloading is leading to "huge economic losses" in the UK.
According to the Strategic Advisory Board for Intellectual Property Policy (SABIP), researchers discovered that 1.3 million people were using one file-sharing network on one weekday.
They estimated that this would lead to them gaining content such as digital music and films worth £12 billion for free.
David Lammy, minister of state for intellectual property, commented: "Illegal downloading robs our economy of millions of pounds every year and seriously damages business and innovation throughout the UK."
He also said that the problem needs tackling on an international basis and said authorities should concentrate on catching and punishing the right people.
In addition, the research claimed that new generation broadband access delivering speeds of 50 megabytes per second would allow people to download 200 mp3 files within five minutes.
Last month, trade body IFPI revealed sales of recorded music fell by more than eight per cent in 2008 to a value of $18.42 billion (£12.67 billion).
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