T1B

RIAA tells students: Pay up for downloads

Fri Mar 9, 7:02 AM ET

ATHENS, Ohio - The music industry is asking 50 Ohio University students to pay $3,000 each to avoid lawsuits accusing them of pirating songs off the Internet.
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The
Recording Industry Association of America asked the university to pass along letters to the students with Internet addresses accused of being involved with the illegal sharing of copyrighted music. The university notified the students on Monday.

"The downloading has occurred and we can't change that, but we can let them know what their options are," OU spokeswoman Sally Linder said Wednesday.

Patrick McGee, a local attorney the university arranged to meet with students, said $3,000 is the standard offer though cases have settled for as much as $5,000. He has represented four Ohio University students in file-sharing lawsuits.

Jenni Engebretsen, spokeswoman for the trade group, based in Washington, D.C., would not disclose or confirm what the standard settlement offer is. She did say no cases have gone to trial yet across the country.

As part of its ongoing copyright crackdown, the association has already sued about 18,000 computer users nationwide since September 2003. The figure includes 1,062 computer users at 130 universities.

The association said last month that it intended to sue more students and others on campuses in the next three months than it has in the past three years and that it would send 400 letters a month to computer users suspected of copyright infringement.

Letters were sent to 13 universities last week, giving students 20 days to pay a settlement.

A letter to one Ohio University student told her that she distributed 787 audio files, putting her total minimum potential liability at more than $590,000. The minimum damages under the law is $750 for each copyright recording that had been shared, the letter said.

Many students cannot even afford the $3,000, McGee said.

"I think the record company is smart enough to know that a lot of students do not have the money," he said. "They can't actually take them up on the offer."

OCmike wrote:I know that they originally went after Napster users by subpoenaing Napster records. Maybe they went the same route with some of the newer file distribution programs.

College students don't have the cash, but many are still considered dependents of the parents. I'm sure this is a ploy to get the parents to pony up the $$.

Mister Bushice wrote:
I don't believe in mass thieving of songs for personal profit, but if DLing a song makes me a fan of the band I might be more inclined to listen to the radio station that plays their stuff, or go to a show, or buy the gear, or buy the album off itunes. All that benefits the industry and, more importantly, the musicians. The CD makes money for the RIAA. A very small percentage of the CD goes to the artists, and the cost to produce the CD vs the price charged is absurd.

Mister Bushice wrote:It was Lars Ulrich who was the bands spokesman on it and he did a piss poor job of it, too. Came across like a whiny bitch out to get users, but it was more anger at having their album stolen.

OCmike wrote:

Mister Bushice wrote:
I don't believe in mass thieving of songs for personal profit, but if DLing a song makes me a fan of the band I might be more inclined to listen to the radio station that plays their stuff, or go to a show, or buy the gear, or buy the album off itunes. All that benefits the industry and, more importantly, the musicians. The CD makes money for the RIAA. A very small percentage of the CD goes to the artists, and the cost to produce the CD vs the price charged is absurd.

The effect of the internet and file-sharing is something that the RIAA doesn't and probably never will get. Rather than pointing to it as the culprit for the decline in album sales, they should look to the retarded $18.00 asking price for piss-poor quality music. Most albums nowadays have 1 or 2 good songs MAX. Rather than charging in the neighborhood of $20 for this mess, they should look at putting out a better product for a more reasonable price...but they won't.

I know you hate the RIAA. But they help us too. For instance, I own a record store, and my business faces ruin. CD sales have dropped through the floor. People aren't buying half as many CDs as they did just a year ago. Revenue is down and costs are up. My store has survived for years, but I now face the prospect of bankruptcy. Every day I ask myself why this is happening.

I bought the store about 12 years ago. It was one of those boutique record stores that sell obscure, independent releases that no-one listens to, not even the people that buy them. I decided that to grow the business I'd need to aim for a different demographic, the family market. My store specialised in family music - stuff that the whole family could listen to. I don't sell sick stuff like Marilyn Manson or cop-killer rap, and I'm proud to have one of the most extensive Christian rock sections that I know of.

The business strategy worked. People flocked to my store, knowing that they (and their children) could safely purchase records without profanity or violent lyrics. Over the years I expanded the business and took on more clean-cut and friendly employees. It took hard work and long hours but I had achieved my dream - owning a profitable business that I had built with my own hands, from the ground up. But now, this dream is turning into a nightmare.

Every day, fewer and fewer customers enter my store to buy fewer and fewer CDs. Why is no one buying CDs? Are people not interested in music? Do people prefer to watch TV, see films, read books? I don't know. But there is one, inescapable truth - Internet piracy is mostly to blame. The statistics speak for themselves - one in three discs world wide is a pirate. On The Internet, you can find and download hundreds of dollars worth of music in just minutes. It has the potential to destroy the music industry, from artists, to record companies to stores like my own. Before you point to the supposed "economic downturn", I'll note that the book store just across from my store is doing great business. Unlike CDs, it's harder to copy books over The Internet.

A week ago, an unpleasant experience with pirates gave me an idea. In my store, I overheard a teenage patron talking to his friend.

"Dude, I'm going to put this CD on the Internet right away."

"Yeah, dude, that's really lete [sic], you'll get lots of respect."

I was fuming. So they were out to destroy the record industry from right under my nose? Fat chance. When they came to the counter to make their purchase, I grabbed the little shit by his shirt. "So...you're going to copy this to your friends over The Internet, punk?" I asked him in my best Clint Eastwood/Dirty Harry voice.

"Uh y-yeh." He mumbled, shocked.

"That's it. What's your name? You're blacklisted. Now take yourself and your little bitch friend out of my store - and don't come back." I barked. Cravenly, they complied and scampered off.

So that's my idea - a national blacklist of pirates. If somebody cannot obey the basic rules of society, then they should be excluded from society. If pirates want to steal from the music industry, then the music industry should exclude them. It's that simple. One strike, and you're out - no reputable record store will allow you to buy another CD. If the pirates can't buy the CDS to begin with, then they won't be able to copy them over The Internet, will they? It's no different to doctors blacklisting drug dealers from buying prescription medicine.

I have just written a letter to the RIAA outlining my proposal. Suing pirates one by one isn't going far enough. Not to mention pirates use the fact that they're being sued to unfairly portray themselves as victims. A national register of pirates would make the problem far easier to deal with. People would be encouraged to give the names of suspected pirates to a hotline, similar to TIPS. Once we know the size of the problem, the police and other law enforcement agencies will be forced to take piracy seriously. They have fought the War on Drugs with skill, so why not the War on Piracy?

This evening, my daughters asked me. "Why do the other kids laugh at us?"

I wanted to tell them the truth - it's because they wear old clothes and have cheap haircuts. I can't afford anything better for them right now.

"It's because they are idiots, kids", I told them. "Don't listen to them."

When the kids went to bed, my wife asked me, "Will we be able to keep the house, David?"

I just shook my head, and tried to hold back the tears. "I don't know, Jenny. I don't know."

When my girls ask me questions like that, I feel like my heart is being wrenched out of my chest. But knowing that I'm doing the best I can to save my family and my business is some consolation.

Some people are offended by my blacklist system. I may have made my store less popular for pirates and sympathisers, but that's a sacrifice I'm willing to make to save my industry from destruction. I am inspired by artists such as Metallica that have taken a stand against the powerful pirate lobby. When everyone believes 2 + 2 = 5, to simply state the truth, that 2 + 2 = 4, is a courageous act.

PSUFAN wrote:BTW, a troll has been posting this around the internet, pretty funny stuff (If you can read, that is)...

Donovan wrote:

PSUFAN wrote:BTW, a troll has been posting this around the internet, pretty funny stuff (If you can read, that is)...

I wish I could say I was amazed how ignorant that record store owner is. From not knowing how easy it is to trade books online (it's very easy, it's just not done often because people still prefer paper books), to using [sic] on a spoken word, he just makes himself look stupid. I won't even get into how much "skill" the war on drugs is being fought with.

The guy deserves to be bankrupt, along with anyone else unwilling to do business in the new digital economy. Fortunately the big labels are starting to get it. EMI is allowing iTunes to sell their music without DRM and at better quality than previously available. Let's hope the others follow suit, although I'll probably stick with other services, like emusic, which cater to indie labels.

Dinsdale wrote:You Upper Mexicans still get ephedrine?