From what I've read on Slashdot the typical settlement offer is thousands of dollars, as in five or 10 thousand.

www.lesjones.com

I have read the same, three thousand and up. I wonder if any students will resort to taking out an extra student loan.

I have also heard that the University's IT department has forwarded on notices to some, but not all, of the students who have been logged file sharing and they have been mostly ignored.

KTB

When are people just going to stop letting the RIAA push around anyone they like? They lost a recent lawsuit because they couldn't prove that the person was the one downloading the files onto the computer. That seems like an easy enough loophole to me.

I wonder how these students are signed up through UT's system. If they have identifiable addresses they would need to show others used their name or computer, yes?

I guess there are contrary views, but I buy my tunes from Itunes or the music store. There are artists and writers trying to make a living doing what I wish I had the talent to do. I'm all for giving them fair pay and not cheating them by getting it for free.

Last time I checked MAC addresses could be spoofed. And, if they were using a computer in a lab they could argue they forgot to log off. My guess is that most of the downloads were done through dorm rooms.

KTB

It is my understanding from these latest news articles as well as most I have read earlier that the RIAA is presently going after those who are providing large numbers of files for upload instead of those who are downloading. They reason that, while downloading the files is a violation of copyright laws, making them available for distribution is much more damaging.

I tried a P2P application years ago (when I had a dial-up connection and no way to reasonably download anything). The default settings made practically the entire hard drive available for uploading. I have a feeling some of these kids have installed these things to download and then neglected to alter the default settings.

A music collection of 5000 files available for uploading on a T1 connection can get you into serious trouble fast, possibly without the "perpetrator" even knowing what was happening.

As for Steve Jobs advocating the abandonment of DRM, I think he is doing that in an effort to polish his own image and make the record companies look greedier, knowing all the time that his suggestion will never be adopted. I do like iTunes, though. It works beautifully and is my primary source for new music.

_____________

Come See Us at

The Hill Online

UPDATE:

There is a new move afoot to modify the DMCA. RIAA doesn't like it so it must be beneficial to consumers.

_____________

Come See Us at

The Hill Online

I tried a P2P application years ago (when I had a dial-up connection and no way to reasonably download anything). The default settings made practically the entire hard drive available for uploading. I have a feeling some of these kids have installed these things to download and then neglected to alter the default settings.

That's an excellent point.

"When are people just going to stop letting the RIAA push around anyone they like?"

Put yourself in the shoes of those students. The RIAA is asking the courts for $750 per song. If you've downloaded a thousand songs, you're facing a potentially enormous judgement, which I'm sure the RIAA spells out in the settlement offers.

Unless you've got deep pockets or a very good defense argument it's hard to refuse the RIAA's offer. If you do, then you have to hire an attorney and fight it out in civil court. It sucks for these students, but there you go.

FWIW, I think illegal downloading isn't defensible. It isn't rape and murder wrong, but it isn't right, either. At the same time I also think the RIAA is a little out of control with these lawsuits. The $750 a song thing is ridiculous.

www.lesjones.com

$750 per song is way out of line in terms of actual damages, but far less than the penalty of $150,000 per violation allowed under copyright law.

Put yourself in the shoes of those students. The RIAA is asking the courts for $750 per song. If you've downloaded a thousand songs, you're facing a potentially enormous judgement, which I'm sure the RIAA spells out in the settlement offers.

Unless you've got deep pockets or a very good defense argument it's hard to refuse the RIAA's offer. If you do, then you have to hire an attorney and fight it out in civil court. It sucks for these students, but there you go.

I can easily put myself in their shoes because I am a student. I don't have deep pockets and would be a little scared if the RIAA sent me a letter. However, I also would be willing to fight for what is right. I am not saying that it is right to download and share music. It is also not right to sue someone for $750 per song just to make a point. The number that they choose shouldn't be arbitrary.

My suggestion would be for them to put pressure on the P2P to track how many times a song was shared by that user. Then they can sue for the actual damages. What are song selling for these days? Three bucks? Well if a song was shared a hundred times, sue that person $300for that particular song. I would actually support their cause if they did it that way.

For the record, I don't download or share music. I used to a few years ago but I now get my songs through legit means.

"However, I also would be willing to fight for what is right."

The students can't fall back on doing what's right, because in the eyes of the law they're clearly in the wrong. They can claim the RIAA mis-identified them (the defense I talked about above), or they can argue the damages are excessive (in which case the judgement might be reduced to the same level as the proposed settlement).

Either route is likely to require a large commitment of time and money. That's why the majority of civil suits are eventually settled out of court.

www.lesjones.com

If I got sent this letter, I would go out and purchase every CD for which I downloaded an MP3 on the album. If you own the CD you can't be infringing any copyright law because the law has made it clear you are entitled to make a digital copy. It would probably be cheaper then settling, and you would have a nice CD collection in the end.

"The default settings made practically the entire hard drive available for uploading."

This could be in favor of the student. If the application has a default setting the student may be able to claim ignorance to how the software works, that is if they are in fact going after uploaders.

KTB