Newzbin2 claimed to be '\ copyright infringement on a vast scale' \

Colin Firth 's box office hit The King' s speech is the centerpiece of a landmark legal dispute between online piracy, Hollywood movie giants and Britain 's largest Internet Service Provider, BT.

Large film studios, including Paramount Pictures and Disney, said the High Court in London to force on Tuesday, BT, access to the site Newzbin2, they claim, "copyright infringement on a vast scale" is to block - including 75 illegal versions of The King 's Speech.

The case is the first of its kind in Britain and the way for the biggest crackdown on online piracy to pave yet.

Hollywood studios argued in court that illegal file sharing-a "very important social evil" and was responsible for the "several hundred million pounds per year" in lost revenue. The studios - represented by their international trade body, the Motion Picture Association (MPA) - want to cut off access to BT Newzbin2 for British internet users in the same way that it will block child abuse websites on the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) list.

Claims, however, BT, that would be such an order barring the "thin end of the wedge," and there 'nothing to stop countless others' owners demand that hundreds of other controversial sites will be blocked.

In her skeleton argument, BT claimed in the High Court that the rights groups want to \ see "400 pages per year" blocked Internet provider. "The rights holders in the music and film industries have already 100 copyright infringement sites that want to see them, would block identified," the ISP said. "The applicant would seek orders blocking access to websites containing allegedly defamatory statements, or private and confidential information."

Richard Spearman QC, on behalf of film studios, told the court that when a blocking is adopted, it will be the other UK ISPs, including Virgin Media and TalkTalk, the demand blacklist of the site or face action.

He told the court that it now \ get "no way, obstruction of breach of copyright" as a court order. "[Newzbin2] allows repeated and mammoth-scale copyright infringement," said Spearman. "If BT could not see that happening, then they have the greatest bunch in history."

The offshore-based Newzbin2 has about 700,000 members with an annual turnover of more than 1 million pounds, according to the rights holders.

According to the rights holders, Newzbin2 currently helps distribute about 115,000 illegal versions of films and 320,000 TV shows.

The film industry 's fight Newzbin dating back to March last year, when the Supreme Court of the offshore-based website ordered to remove all its pirated material and to pay damages to the studios.

However, the company behind the site, Newzbin Ltd, went into administration shortly after the ruling and avoided compensating the studios. Within weeks, clone site Newzbin2 appeared hosting similar material. The rights holders claim Newzbin2 has about 700,000 members, with an annual turnover of more than ?1m.

Chris Marcich, the MPAA's president for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, said, "has Newzbin no regard for British law and it is unacceptable that it violate the copyright protection on a massive, commercial scale, when it ordered was to carry the attack on the high court. "

The case continues and the high court is expected to make a decision this week.