The Recording Industry of America Association yesterday filed lawsuits against three colleges who have Napster-like networks on their internal networks. The suit says that Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Princeton University and Michigan Technological University are each running systems that "centrally index and process search requests for copyrighted works" which users can then download for free at the click of a button. The suit argues that because of the sophistication of the technology and the expertise needed to install and manage such systems, network operators can't help but be aware of the copyright infringement they facilitate. It also alleges the operators of the networks have loaded up hundreds and, in some cases, thousands—of copyrighted works onto their systems. Talking about the suit RIAA
President Cary Sherman told reporters: "These systems are best described as 'local area Napster networks'. The court ruled that Napster was illegal and shut it down. These systems are just as illegal and operate in just the same manner. And just like Napster, they hurt artists, musicians, songwriters, those who invest in their work and the thousands of others who work to bring music to the public. This is a particularly flagrant way to illegally distribute millions of copyrighted works over the Internet. The people who run these Napster networks know full well what they are doing. The lawsuits we've filed represent an appropriate step, given the seriousness of the offense. We hope that these suits serve as a stiff deterrent to anyone who is operating or considering setting up a similar system."
Meanwhile in the UK the BPI have written to universities warning them that they have "a responsibility to halt illegal activity taking place on their premises and with their resources", which basically means students are using college computer labs to download music, and the BPI want university bosses to stop them. The industry association was keen to stress the letter was not threatening to sue universities over downloading that takes place over their computer systems, but to make them aware of the legal implications of students downloading illegal MP3s and encourage and support them in tackling the problem. A BPI spokeswoman explained: "We hope it won't come to legal action. This was a blanket letter to show best practice, an awareness campaign. We are asking universities to notify students that they have policy against copyright theft and then extend their auditing vigilance to music."
But there was a slight warning in the BPI's stand – "If they don't comply, then they run the risk of prosecution." A spokesman for the Universities and Colleges Information Systems Association said it already had regulations in place which it encouraged universities and colleges to adopt. However the Association's Martin Price told CMU that while British universities took their legal responsibilities very seriously, "there is always a worry about the practicalities of enforcing them. It's very difficult for institutions to adopt a policing role as it would be impossible for them to go about their proper business if they were constantly monitoring. It would be like having someone to stand at every photocopier." Expect most universities to put up some signs, students to ignore them and legal action to being. And so the download war continues...