Teenagers in the US would be "less likely" to illegally download content from the internet if they understood the laws governing the use of online digital content, new research claims.

About half of US teens are not familiar with these laws, according to the Microsoft study, while only 11 per cent clearly understand the rules for downloading images, literature, music, movies and software.

Teenagers familiar with rules governing downloading credited their parents, TV, magazines, newspapers and websites, rather than their schools, as resources for information about illegal downloading.

"Widespread access to the internet has amplified the issue of intellectual property rights among children and teens," said Sherri Erickson, global manager of Microsoft's Genuine Software Initiative.

"This survey provides more insight into the disparity between intellectual property awareness and young people today, and highlights the opportunity for schools to help prepare students to be good online citizens."

Microsoft said that, in light of these findings, it has enlisted Topics Education, a developer of custom curricula, to help launch the pilot of a curriculum for US middle school and high school teachers titled Intellectual Property Rights Education.

The scheme aims to help young people understand in a "meaningful way" how intellectual property rights affect their lives, and clarify the "grey areas" in protected and shared content.

To complement the curriculum and enhance the learning experience, Microsoft has also launched an interactive My Bytes website where young people can develop their own intellectual property and assign usage rights.