Mexico City, Jun 17 (IANS/EFE): Mexico City has launched kiosks and special centres for citizens to download music, e-books and videos.

A total of 25 kiosks will be placed at shopping centres around the city to provide access to digital materials to low-income people.

The project was inspired by an initiative in Brazil and is designed to offer access to cultural materials at a competitive price and protect intellectual property rights, officials said.

Mexico City has a growing illegal market that threatens music, films and videos.

Street vendors sell pirated goods at stalls across Mexico City, where even police officers obtain music and movies, officials said.

A large segment of the capital's population lives in low-income households and the project may encourage them to acquire digital materials legally, the officials said.

Downloading materials at the kiosks, however, would require a prepaid card and a storage device, such as a cell phone or a USB flash drive.