RIAA at it again...

[Dr. Bullet]

The Big Four record label cartel says it’s ready to push its black sue ‘em all sales campaign even further into US teaching institutions.


Its RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) will tomorrow file 405 lawsuits against students at 18 major universities.


The news comes immediately on the heels of another Big Four record label cartel “initiative’ under which its IFPI (International Federation of Phonographic Industry) has just announced it’s launching 963 suits against people in Europe and Asia.


Headed up by cartel mouthpiece Cary Sherman, this latest US onslaught comes, “In response to an emerging epidemic of music theft on a specialized, high-speed university computer network known as Internet2."

Through the p2p application i2hub, Internet2 is, “increasingly becoming the network of choice for students seeking to steal copyrighted songs and other works on a massive scale,” says the RIAA.


“We cannot let this high-speed network become a zone of lawlessness where the normal rules don’t apply,’ says RIAA president Sherman.

"We have worked very constructively with the university community, improving educational efforts at colleges across the country, expanding partnerships between schools and legal online services and providing a clearinghouse for expertise on technological anti-piracy solutions.”


Translated, this reads: “We’ve been able to shoe-horn corporate music stores we back and supply into universities so they can sell our product. If they play ball and get their students to buy our stuff, the students won’t end up in court. If they don’t ….”



Centralized piracy servers
The four cartel members, only one of which can be said to be American, are also eyeing another 140 schools in 41 states.


“While these schools were not included in the initial round of lawsuits, letters are being sent to each university president alerting them to the illegal activity occurring on their campuses,” say EMI (Britain), Sony BMG (Japan, Germany), UMG (Francxe) and Warner (US).


"More than two years ago, through the Joint Committee of the Higher Education and Entertainment Communities [JCHEEC], the RIAA and the entertainment community partnered with higher education leaders to address the issue of piracy on college campuses," says the RIAA.


"The RIAA, in letters sent today, is asking university presidents to take action to stop illegal file sharing related to not only i2hub but also other university networks like the centralized piracy servers often set up by students on the college’s local area network."


Schools targeted by the cartel include:


Boston University, Carnegie Mellon University, Columbia University, Drexel University, Georgia Institute of Technology, Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Michigan State University, New York University, Ohio State University, Princeton University, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Rochester Institute of Technology, University of California – Berkeley, University of California – San Diego, University of Massachusetts – Amherst, University of Pittsburgh and University of Southern California.


Hard-core criminals
The RIAA, a component of the entertainment industry, is fighting a desperate and losing battle to turn back the tide of technological progress.


Led by a tiny band of venal, narrow-minded, technically ignorant corporate executives based principally in the US and Europe, the industry is attempting, and failing, to continue 1990s practices based on physical sales in the digital 21st century.


To regain control of its formerly compliant customer bases, the cartel must somehow gain complete dominance of the way files are being distributed on the internet.


It can never succeed but until it recognizes it has to embrace modern technologies and practices instead of trying to sue them, and their users, into seeing things the Hollywood way, men, women and children portrayed as hard-core criminals will continue to be subjected to this kind of legally sanctioned terrorism.


And while the labels rage helplessly against p2p, the numbers of file sharers globally and in the US continue to rise, disingenuous cartel misinformation reports to the contrary notwithstanding.


P2p research firm Big Champagne says the average number of p2p users online around the world at any given moment in March, 2004, was 7,370,644.


But by March, 2005, the number was 8,282,986.


In the US, with students and teenagers as the principal targets, in March, 2004, an average of 4,603,571 people were on the p2p networks at any given moment.


In March, 2005, the number had soared to 6,016,247.



Artificially inflated costs
In the meanwhile, you could be forgiven for thinking that the almost 10,000 people who have received subpoenas in the US have ended up in court where they were found guilty of file sharing.


However, you’d be wrong.


Not one of the people victimized by the RIAA for the non-existent crime of file sharing has ever appeared before a court, or been found guilty of anything.


The only winners in this are the lawyers and the people running the scalp-hunting agencies which supply the entertainment industry cartels with their victims.

As Britain’s Brian Petruska says in a letter to the Washington Post:


“File sharing is a technological advance that allows for the costless worldwide distribution of digital media. By eliminating the distribution costs, it makes the world and everyone in it wealthier by enriching people's lives with music and other forms of entertainment.


“Second, file sharing will not bankrupt artists, record companies or movie studios. These folks will continue to receive royalties from radio play, live performances and cinema presentations. In addition, music consumers desire not just music. They also want pictures of their favorite artists, album art, lyric sheets, etc. Thus, file sharing does not spell the doom of an industry, merely the doom of a particular business model.


“Record companies and movie studios artificially inflate the cost of distribution by enforcing their copyright monopoly on distribution. This monopoly is a gift from the government that is now contrary to the public good.


“Technology changes, and industry and law must change with it. File sharing can increase the amount of music and art in people's lives. I hope that the Supreme Court is not as myopic and chained to the status quo as The Post's editorial board.”

They're just greedy idiots who have been singing this song since 8 tracks, casettes, and VCR's. If anyone would bother with the real numbers, they'd see that they aren't losing any money. In fact, I believe I read a report that said they're making more. Myself, I've bought one music recording, and that was to replace one I had borrowed and lost. This means that the RIAA isn't losing any money because I may or may not share some music. They never had my money in their coffers to lose to p2p.

This reminds me of Metallica. I will forever remember them not as the hard rocking band they used to be, but as a whining, childish group of morons who shot and drank all their ample money away.

EDIT: Removed link for rule purposes

[DevilDog#1]

Are they allowed to raid people's home?

[Dr. Bullet]

I talked to my shotgun, and it said no

I imagine they'll just subpoena the ISP files which can prove that such actions took place...

[DevilDog#1]

Don't they somehow infringe on user's right by asking for personal info from ISP??

[Dr. Bullet]

Not sure, but I would guess that since users have infringed on copyright laws first, they forfeit any privacy rights they may have.

[atholon]

I honestly don't see how it hurts them if they have a problem with it they should make the songs and video files harder to copy and share.

Personally if I was to download something off of Itunes and I really liked the band. I might thing about getting their cd.

People that download them off of P2P may think the same thing.

[atholon]

BTW might want to remove the link. That site has Warez crap on it.

[-Tigger-]

over here in the UK, theres a law trying to be pushed through that forces ISP's to give out details of uploaders mainly and then they are sent a warning if it still continues then their internet is cut off and i think the police then move in on u, then u'd b imprisoned then hav 2 go to court and all thats rubbishy stuff

[Dr. Bullet]

Thanks Ath, I edited it. I didn't even see that stuff on there, lol.

Honestly, I think the CD's put out these days are hardly worth the CD-R's I put them on. I wouldn't even pay $5 for most of the music on the shelves. There's usually one decent song, and the rest are stupid. They should be happy with the money they do make.

And, as a friend of mine pointed out, all their money doesn't come from store CD sales. In fact, they hardly get much from that anyway. Most of it comes from concerts, merchandise, and radio royalties, not to mention lending the name to things such as U2 with the iPod.

[atholon]

I think it is the Record Company's fault. If they would actually put some sort of protection on there... I think they should sue Mircosoft because they are the ones making software to copy music.

Plus the main reason they are doing it is to make more $$$$ they'd rather sue people and make money than do something to fix the problem.

[BADDOG]

These huge music corporations seem determined to put a stop to p2p permanently.

Regards

[atholon]

Thing I don't get is why it is just them? Why not WB or 20 th Century Fox? Why not Adobe and other big software manufacturers.

Their product is worth more than a crappy music CD.

Like Autocad $800 for the LT version.

[DevilDog#1]

P2P here to stay. It's just they want put to put a stop to it's use for FREE. They want to use it for their own reasons, e.g. Napster.

[Dr. Bullet]

Originally posted by atholon
I think it is the Record Company's fault. If they would actually put some sort of protection on there... I think they should sue Mircosoft because they are the ones making software to copy music.

Plus the main reason they are doing it is to make more $$$$ they'd rather sue people and make money than do something to fix the problem.

M$ doesn't make the copying software. They don't even make the software that is used in XP, Roxio makes it.

It's just out and out greed. Like DD said, P2P is here to stay. As soon as some new technology for sharing files is made, the RIAA will be beating their chests over that. Really, the only people they're helping are their lawyers...heck, I'd love to be an RIAA lawyer right now

[atholon]

So they don't make Windows Media Player?

PS: There is always going to be free p2p because there are a ton of programmers out there. One, only one has to make a program like LimeWire or Kazaa.

[Dr. Bullet]

Sure, but not everyone uses WMP. There's WinAmp, Nero Media player, Real...just to name a few

[atholon]

Yeah but 90% of the people that call me use WMP.

[Dr. Bullet]

Note that those aren't likely the people that will be doing p2p. How many people that call you would you say are on or above your level of technical expertise? Generally, p2p users are more tech-savvy than the typical user...

[atholon]

Hmm I get some pretty knowledgible people...

True though because the old WMP only lets you make WMV files not MP3.

[Trojan]

I personally think the Music business has exploded into an uncontrolable entity. No name bands, unpopular bands or older groups that todays youth would make no effort into listening to, reach homes that would never have if it wasn't free. What keeps the business alve is not the "popular groups" that the Labels have signed. It's our youth, who has been influenced by the stereotypical ways of musicians alike, music good or bad depending on personal taste and peer pressure. Parents buy computers for kids. Pay for their ISP and College. But they don't pay for their music always. It's tough trying to pay for dates, food, clothing and shelter and then turn around and buy a $15 CD. Times have changed people. They can't control our wallets.

I for one am against piracy, arrg! I am guilty of p2p sharing in my past with programs like napster, pre KaZaA. Pre Metallica lawsuit and the RIAA trying to take legitimate action. I no longer share my files unless it is my music. "My music", meaning my original recordings of me singing and playing guitar with or without a band. I for one, want my never heard of music being circulated by the masses even if I'm not making money in return. Many signed artists would disagree and dislike my stand on the subject. It's their bread and butter. But never forget the old saying, "Don't quit your day job". Even professional atheletes go to College and get degrees. For the most part, they are educated people with a back up plan. Get my drift?

The Large record labels have been letting us down since the early 90's. What good music has actually derived from the great artists of the 50's, 60's and 70's and should I mention the hair band rock and roll in the 80's which I personally liked and still listen to today because thier is nothing but crap being played today. It could be the Record Labels own source of self destruction. Their own demise. It's a revolution people, it is year 2005 and after 15 years of absolute garbage on the air waves, except a few (we all have picked up a few songs, bands along the way that we do like in the last 15 years, but not the majority.) and have went out and purchased their CD's for collection.

I could be the fool here, but I do actually go out and buy my music for collection. I'm in support of those whom I do like. And for those that I don't, I'll never give them a dime. That's probably the Majority of the Record Company's terrible contribution to this worlds lust for good music in year 2005.

If you really like a band, singer our musician. Support him. Buy his/her music. Quit stealing and limit yourself to those you really care for. Quit wasting your mind on garbage. Most of them could probably care less what their music does to your psyche... .-troj