Things may get even more expensive for ripped-off Brits, if a proposal to introduce an ”iPod tax” becomes law.

The levy, which would be charged on every digital music player sold, has already been approved in Holland. 

Dutch consumers will soon pay a copyright levy every time they purchase an MP3 player.  Reports suggest the surcharge will be as much as €3.28 per gigabyte, adding as much as €180 to the price of a top-end Apple iPod.

Now, some senior figures in the UK music industry are now calling for a similar system to be introduced in here.

“The illegal digital download market is in danger of crippling the British music industry,” said Doug D’Arcy, former head of Chrysalis and BMG.

“We had an opportunity to introduce a levy on audio cassettes back in the 1970s and passed it up. That decision cost the business tens of millions, and to make the same mistake again could be fatal.”

Consumer groups argue that as the bulk of iPod

Not surprisingly, many artists and smaller record labels are in support of the levy, though it has thus far failed to find favour with the industry’s major players.

Sony and EMI have refused to support the proposals and the International Federation of Phonographic Industries (IFPI) says the it is “not an appropriate response to the problem.” Though piracy is an expensive problem, costing the global music industry an estimated $2.1 billion a year.