A survey of internet use in eight countries conducted by the MPAAand online research company OTX has revealed that nearly one in four users haveillegally downloaded a film at some point.

Researchers interviewed respondents in the US, UK, Germany,France, Italy, Australia, South Korea and Japan, and found that on average 24%of users had downloaded films, rising to 58% in South Korea.

Legitimate access to films among those who download appears to bedropping across the board, with one in three South Korean downloaders sayingthey visited theatres less.

Perhaps most worrying of all, 17% of respondents who said they hadnever downloaded a film before admitted they intended to do so within the next12 months.

Respondents said the principal reason they chose to download filmswas free content, but they also expressed interest in legal downloads.

Illegal downloading looks like it will stick around as thebroadband market matures. Many of those questioned said they would considerdownloading or downloading more if they had faster connection speeds.