Here we go again. The RIAA is getting vicious again. They had to change their tactics. But correct if I'm wrong, I remember reading somewhere that Sharman, the owners of the Kazaa network sued the RIAA for using their network in illegal way. Sharman stated that according to their licensing agreement, RIAA is using the Kazaa network in a way that Sharman does not allow.
Here is the link:
http://www.techtv.com/news/culture/s...597593,00.html
Adopting new legal strategy, recording industry files more than 500 suits against anonymous music swappers.
Watch today at 8 p.m. and tomorrow at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. Eastern.
By Steve Enders
Heads up "John Doe." The RIAA says you and 531 others are still illegally swapping too much music, and you're all getting sued.
Tonight on "Tech Live," get the very latest on this new round of lawsuits, reaction from all corners of the industry, and an analysis of the new legal tact taken by the Recording Industry Association of America.
The 532 suits filed in Washington, D.C., mark a new strategy by the RIAA, whose controversial subpoena process was recently ruled unconstitutional by a federal court in RIAA v. Verizon. The court said the industry had no right to subpoena Internet service providers for information about their subscribers.
No more Mr. Nice Guy
The suits come amid two recent, conflicting reports that say use of file-swapping services is both down and up in recent months. Also, legitimate sites such as Apple's iTunes Music Store have announced great success in selling singles online. Some 30 million tracks have been downloaded from iTunes, according to Apple.
When the Verizon ruling was announced, the RIAA immediately went back on the offensive, saying the court's decision merely meant the recording industry would cease sending subpoenas and first file lawsuits.
That's exactly what the RIAA has now done in filing the 532 new suits Wednesday. In a statement released by the RIAA, the recording industry says it will subsequently issue subpoenas now that the suits have been filed.
Additionally, the RIAA says it will no longer offer settlements to alleged file swappers prior to suing them.
Get-tough campaign continues
In a statement, RIAA president Cary Sherman said, "Our campaign against illegal file sharers is not missing a beat. The message to illegal file sharers should be as clear as ever -- we can and will continue to bring lawsuits on a regular basis against those who illegally distribute copyrighted music."
Mitch Bainwol, RIAA chairman and CEO, said file swappers can no longer plead ignorance in the wake of the RIAA's strong enforcement efforts and the recent launch of legal music download sites including iTunes, Napster, and BuyMusic.com.
"The debate isn't digital versus plastic. It isn't old versus new," Bainwol said in the RIAA's statement. "Here's what it is: Legitimate versus illegitimate. It's iTunes and the new Napster and others versus KaZaA, Imesh, and Grokster. It's whether or not digital music will be enjoyed in a fashion that supports the creative process or one that robs it of its future."
RIAA FAQ About New Lawsuits
In addition to the statement released by the RIAA announcing its legal actions, the recording industry released the following Frequently Asked Questions about the suits.
Where else/how often have John Doe suits been filed?
Many plaintiffs file John Doe lawsuits when they do not know the name of the person against whom they are taking legal action. For example, the jewelry industry made use of the John Doe procedure when Rolex filed hundreds of lawsuits against individuals passing off counterfeit Rolex watches as genuine, but the company did not know the name of the sellers. In the online context, this litigation tool is used with increasing frequency.
Do these suits allege anything different from those filed last year?
These lawsuits are similar to the suits we filed last year against individual infringers. The underlying copyright infringement has not changed, nor has the fact that it is clearly illegal to download and upload copyrighted works on a peer-to-peer network without authorization. As with our lawsuits last year, we are seeking damages and injunctive relief for copyright infringement under the federal copyright laws -- specifically, Title 17 of the United States Code, which among other things provides penalties for the unauthorized reproduction, distribution, or digital transmission of copyrighted sound recordings.
How are these suits different from the suits you filed last fall and winter?
The only difference between these "John Doe" lawsuits and the litigations we filed last year is the procedural process by which we file them. Instead of issuing a subpoena first to learn an infringer's identity, we file a lawsuit first and then issue the subpoena subsequently.
You said your first round of lawsuits last year were against the "worst cases." Is that the case with these suits?
These lawsuits will be similar to those we filed last year. We are targeting major offenders.
What kind of penalties does the law allow now and what are you seeking?
Nothing has changed. Under federal law, copyright holders can sue infringers for statutory damages ranging from $750 to $150,000 for each of their copyrighted works that have been illegally copied or distributed. We intend to leave it up to the court to decide what kind of damages should be paid. We continue to seek settlements wherever possible.
How can you offer illegal file sharers an opportunity for settlement given you have to sue first now?
Unfortunately, we are no longer able to send a pre-lawsuit notification letter in advance and offer a chance for settlement before filing a lawsuit. Nonetheless, we wanted to go the extra mile to develop a variation of the program that has so far been successful. After learning the identities of illegal file sharers through "John Doe" litigations, but before amending the complaint with the infringer's name and address, the RIAA would offer the opportunity to settle the case before proceeding any further with the litigation.
How does filing John Doe lawsuits change the manner in which you collect evidence for a lawsuit?
It doesn't. Our evidence collection process involves searching only for files that are readily available to every other member of the public.
Here's how it works: When you log on to a peer-to-peer network, your P2P software has a default setting that automatically informs the network of your user name and the names and sizes of the files on your hard drive that are available for copying.
Because all this information is publicly available to anyone on the network, it's relatively easy to look for -- and find -- users who are offering to "share" copyrighted music files. The networks could not work if this were not the case. We search the network for infringing files, similar to the way other users search the network.
When we come across a user who is distributing copyrighted music files, we download copyrighted music files (of our member companies) the user is offering, as well as document the date and time that we downloaded those files.
Additional information that is publicly available from these systems allows us to identify the user's Internet service provider (ISP). After manually reviewing the information to confirm that infringement has occurred, we can then decide whether it justifies filing a John Doe lawsuit using the individual's Internet protocol (IP) address as a placeholder for the person's name.
All that changes is the process by which we obtain the name of the individual engaged in the illegal activity in order to file a lawsuit against that individual.
Glad