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Starting today, song swappers have to face the music
Thu Jun 26, 7:27 AM ET - Jefferson Graham USA TODAY
If you're sharing music online, the record industry is coming after you.
Starting today, the Recording Industry Association of America [RIAA] begins an unprecedented campaign to track down music fans who trade unauthorized songs on the Internet. The RIAA plans to file ''hundreds'' of lawsuits as early as August.
''Any individual computer user who continues to steal music will face the real risk of having to face the music,'' RIAA president Cary Sherman said.
It's the most dramatic step in a shift of copyright enforcement from swap services -- often based overseas and difficult to shut down -- to the millions who trade online. Potential damages could reach $150,000 for each violation.
Recent court victories against Verizon have given the RIAA the ability to easily subpoena and retrieve the identities of infringers from Internet service providers. Verizon, with the support of such groups as the ACLU and Consumers Union, is appealing.
The RIAA's initial targets will be the ''most egregious'' song sharers, Sherman said, though no limit was specified.
File sharing and CD burning are being blamed for lower album sales -- down 8% this year, according to unreleased figures from Nielsen SoundScan. Kazaa, the most popular pirate service, claims 230 million registered users. Legal alternatives such as MusicNet and Pressplay have 300,000 total subscribers.
But the success of the Apple iTunes Music Store, which has sold 5 million songs in two months at 99 cents each, has proved there's a market for music sales on the Net.
''We're at the point where the public has been educated,'' Sherman said. ''People understand this activity is illegal, the legal services are getting better and there's no longer any excuse for downloading illegally.''
Wayne Rosso of file-swap service Grokster called the RIAA's actions ''lunacy'' and said, ''It is typical of them to not only alienate their customers but sue them into bankruptcy.''
Thu Jun 26, 7:27 AM ET - Jefferson Graham USA TODAY
If you're sharing music online, the record industry is coming after you.
Starting today, the Recording Industry Association of America [RIAA] begins an unprecedented campaign to track down music fans who trade unauthorized songs on the Internet. The RIAA plans to file ''hundreds'' of lawsuits as early as August.
''Any individual computer user who continues to steal music will face the real risk of having to face the music,'' RIAA president Cary Sherman said.
It's the most dramatic step in a shift of copyright enforcement from swap services -- often based overseas and difficult to shut down -- to the millions who trade online. Potential damages could reach $150,000 for each violation.
Recent court victories against Verizon have given the RIAA the ability to easily subpoena and retrieve the identities of infringers from Internet service providers. Verizon, with the support of such groups as the ACLU and Consumers Union, is appealing.
The RIAA's initial targets will be the ''most egregious'' song sharers, Sherman said, though no limit was specified.
File sharing and CD burning are being blamed for lower album sales -- down 8% this year, according to unreleased figures from Nielsen SoundScan. Kazaa, the most popular pirate service, claims 230 million registered users. Legal alternatives such as MusicNet and Pressplay have 300,000 total subscribers.
But the success of the Apple iTunes Music Store, which has sold 5 million songs in two months at 99 cents each, has proved there's a market for music sales on the Net.
''We're at the point where the public has been educated,'' Sherman said. ''People understand this activity is illegal, the legal services are getting better and there's no longer any excuse for downloading illegally.''
Wayne Rosso of file-swap service Grokster called the RIAA's actions ''lunacy'' and said, ''It is typical of them to not only alienate their customers but sue them into bankruptcy.''