As RIAA suits loom, customers often confused with criminals

Dom · Jul 23, 2003, 12:41 AM

Jesse Jordan has become a poster boy for what can happen to people who get on the bad side of the music industry.
The 19-year-old student at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, N.Y., was one of the first people sued by the music industry in an initial round aimed at stemming illegal online trading of copyrighted music.

An information technology major going on his second year at RPI, Jordan ran a campus search engine where music could be traded. He says he didn't have many options — or the money — to fight the lawsuit in court. So he settled with the Recording Industry Association of America in exchange for his life savings: $12,000.

"There was nothing else I could do," he said. "My parents aren't rich."

Jordan's story is just the tip of the iceberg. In six to eight weeks, hundreds of people who trade online will receive notice that they're also being sued by the industry.

The lawsuits are the latest development in an increasingly pitched battle between the music industry and people who trade copyrighted material over the Internet. Even artists like Madonna are getting involved by spamming file-sharing networks with surreptitious, profanity-laced messages aimed at their fans.

An early report suggests the lawsuit threats may have had a small effect in the first week after the announcement. Nielsen-NetRatings reported that there was a 15% drop-off in activity on the networks during the week ending July 6. However, it's unclear how much of that drop-off was because of the threats or other factors, such as the July Fourth holiday weekend.

Read More...

The_Neon_Cowboy · Jul 23, 2003, 01:59 AM

down with riaa ... some one needs to pull some gangster stuff on the riaa .... i like to see someone go postal @ riaa headcorters

Esaz666 · Jul 23, 2003, 02:05 PM

This is just my opinion.

The more i hear about the RIAA the more i dont like what i hear.
They take people to court for swapping files,
They claim that Thay are losing money everytime someone copies 1 of their
tunes, movies etc.
it make's me sick.The people who copy these files and swap stuff over the net
probably wouldnt buy the stuff anyway. Myself if i like a record or game i buy it.
I do copy stuff myself. But if i like it I definitely buy it, we have to support the
producers of the software / music etc. I have the right to test the things i buy, this
makes it less easy to be ripped off by bad products that dont live up to the hype.
I have downloaded mp3's off the net and then bought the albumn.I think it's totally
OUT OF ORDER the way these big media company's are taking young people to court
They dont care if they win the court case or not, they can afford it, we can't
I am thinking of boycotting buying music and film's alltogether because of their
underhand tactics. I heard first that they were going to hack my computer,
Then my Isp service was going to be cut off.Now they want to take everyone to court.

The thing is piracy and hacking has been around just as long as computers.Sorry but they will
never stamp it out. The people they should be going after are the people who deal in warez cd's
and sell copied music cdr's etc.I write music myself and have a small studio.
i have played on the radio ... someone could have taped my tune's (big deal) anyone could just tape any tune off the radio.I think the music industry is just turning a generation of people against them,
they are lieing , the reason cd sales are falling is the quality of product they are turning out. They are making enemy's of their customers ( Not a good Move). you are not a Criminal if you copy a tune. Infact I dont even beleve them,They probably are just not making as much money.

Computers were built on hacking and piracy, it co-exists with the normal
way of thing's, it is harmfull but that is the way of the computer world. They will never make me
comply with thier profiteering ways. I dont actually copy much music, I think that mp3's actually
improve sales not decrease them, they do this by getting the music out to a wider audience.
addmitedly some people will just have copies of stuff, they are the people who would just have tapes
of the stuff anyway, it makes it easier to copy more stuff and is more available ,that's it. I can understand
that they want to safe guard their profits, but they have gone about it in a totally evil way.
I hate lawyer's and all that kind of stuff, it's just not called for, I bet the lawyer's are laughing all the
way to the bank. Ive got nothing against the record labels but the RiAA/Esa
"Entertainment Software Association " are part of the chain of thought which says
'lets turn the net into one big advert/shop' 'we must control the net not the users' .
Forget it, it'll never work. The poeple who use the net control what happens on it not big multinational company's.

Sorry to go on so much but i had to say something.
cheers.

RIAA go away.

'Be carefull they are watching' LoL
i Dont care.

Jul 23, 2003, 12:41 AM	#1
Dom DriverHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jun 2002 Posts: 12,940 Rep Power: 0	As RIAA suits loom, customers often confused with criminals Jesse Jordan has become a poster boy for what can happen to people who get on the bad side of the music industry. The 19-year-old student at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, N.Y., was one of the first people sued by the music industry in an initial round aimed at stemming illegal online trading of copyrighted music. An information technology major going on his second year at RPI, Jordan ran a campus search engine where music could be traded. He says he didn't have many options — or the money — to fight the lawsuit in court. So he settled with the Recording Industry Association of America in exchange for his life savings: $12,000. "There was nothing else I could do," he said. "My parents aren't rich." Jordan's story is just the tip of the iceberg. In six to eight weeks, hundreds of people who trade online will receive notice that they're also being sued by the industry. The lawsuits are the latest development in an increasingly pitched battle between the music industry and people who trade copyrighted material over the Internet. Even artists like Madonna are getting involved by spamming file-sharing networks with surreptitious, profanity-laced messages aimed at their fans. An early report suggests the lawsuit threats may have had a small effect in the first week after the announcement. Nielsen-NetRatings reported that there was a 15% drop-off in activity on the networks during the week ending July 6. However, it's unclear how much of that drop-off was because of the threats or other factors, such as the July Fourth holiday weekend. Read More...

Jul 23, 2003, 01:59 AM	#2
The_Neon_Cowboy HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: U.S.A. Posts: 16,009 Rep Power: 92 System Specs	down with riaa ... some one needs to pull some gangster stuff on the riaa .... i like to see someone go postal @ riaa headcorters __________________

Jul 23, 2003, 02:05 PM	#3
Esaz666 BeardHeaven Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Uk,Earth,Universe,3rd dimention Posts: 298 Rep Power: 59	This is just my opinion. The more i hear about the RIAA the more i dont like what i hear. They take people to court for swapping files, They claim that Thay are losing money everytime someone copies 1 of their tunes, movies etc. it make's me sick.The people who copy these files and swap stuff over the net probably wouldnt buy the stuff anyway. Myself if i like a record or game i buy it. I do copy stuff myself. But if i like it I definitely buy it, we have to support the producers of the software / music etc. I have the right to test the things i buy, this makes it less easy to be ripped off by bad products that dont live up to the hype. I have downloaded mp3's off the net and then bought the albumn.I think it's totally OUT OF ORDER the way these big media company's are taking young people to court They dont care if they win the court case or not, they can afford it, we can't I am thinking of boycotting buying music and film's alltogether because of their underhand tactics. I heard first that they were going to hack my computer, Then my Isp service was going to be cut off.Now they want to take everyone to court. The thing is piracy and hacking has been around just as long as computers.Sorry but they will never stamp it out. The people they should be going after are the people who deal in warez cd's and sell copied music cdr's etc.I write music myself and have a small studio. i have played on the radio ... someone could have taped my tune's (big deal) anyone could just tape any tune off the radio.I think the music industry is just turning a generation of people against them, they are lieing , the reason cd sales are falling is the quality of product they are turning out. They are making enemy's of their customers ( Not a good Move). you are not a Criminal if you copy a tune. Infact I dont even beleve them,They probably are just not making as much money. Computers were built on hacking and piracy, it co-exists with the normal way of thing's, it is harmfull but that is the way of the computer world. They will never make me comply with thier profiteering ways. I dont actually copy much music, I think that mp3's actually improve sales not decrease them, they do this by getting the music out to a wider audience. addmitedly some people will just have copies of stuff, they are the people who would just have tapes of the stuff anyway, it makes it easier to copy more stuff and is more available ,that's it. I can understand that they want to safe guard their profits, but they have gone about it in a totally evil way. I hate lawyer's and all that kind of stuff, it's just not called for, I bet the lawyer's are laughing all the way to the bank. Ive got nothing against the record labels but the RiAA/Esa "Entertainment Software Association " are part of the chain of thought which says 'lets turn the net into one big advert/shop' 'we must control the net not the users' . Forget it, it'll never work. The poeple who use the net control what happens on it not big multinational company's. Sorry to go on so much but i had to say something. cheers. RIAA go away. 'Be carefull they are watching' LoL i Dont care. Last edited by Esaz666; Jul 23, 2003 at 04:19 PM.