After three years of wrangling, the European Union has finally adopted new legislation protecting the use of films, music and books on the internet.

EU officials say the copyright directive aims at striking a balance between consumers and the entertainment industry.

The directive allows consumers to download material for private use, but leaves it to individual countries to decide what payments must be made.

The EU's internal market commissioner, Frits Bolkestein, described the directive as the most important copyright measure ever to be adopted by the Union.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service