Sir Elton John and Oscar-winning lyricist Don Black are backing a campaign to persuade the public not to download free music from the net.
They claim free systems like Napster could deprive musicians of their livelihood.
The Respect the Value of Music campaign is the work of British Music Rights, which represents writers and composers.
It aims to highlight the problems caused by programmes like Napster, which lets computer users swap digitally stored music with others for free.
Guy Fletcher, chairman of the British Academy of Composers and Songwriters, said: "You hear music everywhere. But we believe the public has become used to the idea that they have music for nothing and we are suffering greatly."
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