AfterDawn: News

RIAA files 751 more lawsuits

The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has filed another 751 lawsuits against Internet users it accuses to have distributed copyrighted music online through P2P networks. This brings the total number of cases in the United States above 17,000. The "John Doe" lawsuits filed today simply serve as placeholders until the RIAA can find out the true identity of the P2P user. The RIAA singles out P2P for the massive drop in CD sales over the past 5 years.

It is only now however that the RIAA is seeing any real challenges. Normally people would be inclined to take the settlement offer from the RIAA, which is about $3,500 or more. However, some people being sued have decided that they won't pay the settlement and are willing to bring the case the whole way instead. One such woman is Patricia Santangelo, a mother of five who claims she is completely innocent.



Instead, she thinks the likely culprit could have been a friend of her children. That brings an important question up - is an IP address and some information on the actual music files enough to sustain a lawsuit against n Internet account holder? We will perhaps find that out soon, as Santangelo has requested a trial by jury.

Source:
Betanews

Written by: James Delahunty @ 15 Dec 2005 12:30

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• 39 comments

• Buga

  Im starting to think that these corn-holes like P2P. If they are getting 3500.00 from each of the 17,000 people, they are making over 60 million bucks. And they didnt have to record, promote, produce anything. Saved them from having to make 3 to 6 million copies of crap. If they Do every get P2P tied down they will have to stop sueing and lose even more money.

  15.12.2005 13:09 #1

• mkaseatgb

  I'm pretty sure that they dont just keep all the money for themselves. Its a government run agency, meaning all the money goes towards the government. i think its then distributed to artists, album companies etc.

  15.12.2005 13:55 #2

• Mik3h

  That stupid mother should have never changed her story! I really hope to live to see the day when an IP address is just not enough evidence anymore :)
  
  -Mike

  15.12.2005 14:03 #3

• McKeva

  From some statistics I was looking at in a Mintel report, I remember seeing that CD sales hadn't actually decreased but rather the increase in sales had decreased.
  
  Obviously this has changed recently because of all the download services (and the Mintel report only had information up to 2003).

  15.12.2005 14:04 #4

• Rikoshay

  Being that the case, I'm sure the gov't is using it for very important causes... Yeah, right! They probably nuked another cow over in Algeria with that 2.6 million, and the remaining 300,000 will go back to the talentless artists that don't deserve the synthesiser that got them famous!

  15.12.2005 14:17 #5

• evilh0ly

  trial by jury this is gonna be interesting are the juries cold hearted people or they're normal people who's sympathetic, and mainly reasonable unlike the judge who's the right arms of mass media.

  15.12.2005 14:37 #6

• llongtheD

  I think I've figured out the RIAA's business strategy. Create boxes of shit (eg. the music they try to sell), and if it does'nt sell, sue the consumer. Its a winning formula, they are not exposed to any loss this way. Maybe if they started listening to their own consumer base, and their artists instead of focusing so hard on their bottom line they could really reap the rewards. A loyal consumer base and a bigger bottom line.
  Here's another idea, instead of taking one good track and packing it on a disc with 9 filler bullshit tracks, how about putting 9 good tracks, and maybe one or to fillers on a disc. People might just start collecting retail music again.
  Music isn't a business formula, its an art. The RIAA needs to stop attempting to feed us formula music.

  15.12.2005 17:42 #7

• Mt_Funky

  Guys-
  
  How likely is it that people downloading and sharing files via torrent files and apps get caught?
  
  Isn't the bulk of the lawsuits filed against people using programs such as KaZaA or LimeWire?
  

  Newbie restrictions to limited posting is lame!! Who spams anymore, come on!!
  
  ~Dimensional Funk

  15.12.2005 17:58 #8

• PirateDan

  What make you think the artist gets the money??
  The RIAA keeps all the money itself, the artists are used just like we are. They are the puppets that go on TV and cry that we are stealing from them. But they were the ones to sell their souls for the recording contract.
  The folks that are missing the boat are the radio stations if they would play more music and talk less and less commericals. They would be the ones reaping the benefits of this.
  But what am I saying they are a pawn of the RIAA too, sorry too many paint fumes, or is it music that SUCKS.

  15.12.2005 19:33 #9

• Rikoshay

  That's why I listen to my local pirate radio station. It's a hell of a lot better than commercial stations, and if they have nothing to play or nothing to say, they just let people hear ambiance. Ahh, sweet ambiance!

  15.12.2005 19:40 #10

• dz50

  can anyone think of the last album they thought was good from top to bottom? like an album that you would never have to use the skip button on? i don't think one has been made in the new millenium.

  15.12.2005 19:59 #11

• dubire

  comments you know the music people say
  
  they say
  i'm worth 50 million my songs are priceless
  we say
  this is crap deleting this
  
  they say
  dont download my songs buy the record
  we say
  make something worth buying
  
  they say
  downloading is a crime
  we say
  you think its a crime because your not getting any money off us my mother thought me to share and its about time the world learned how to share and not have selfish people looking after there own intrests
  
  they say
  music sales are down
  we say
  yes they are there is new services free and pay out there you can make your owen cd of what you want not what they think you want to hear
  
  
  i gave up on buying cd's a long time ago there has just not been anything good out there and now there is a lot of artists (real artists) that are putting there music on the internet and the record lables are scared as they know there days are numbered

  15.12.2005 23:30 #12

• anubis66

  you know, if they didnt charge so much maybe i would buy cds. but 13 to 20 dollars for an album with maybe 4 good songs? and the artist only sees like 50 cents of that album, the cd costs 50 cents, and the equipment maybe a quater for ware and electricity. so where is the other 15 bucks going? the company that "owns" the band. thats is my major reason cds suck.

  16.12.2005 00:40 #13

• garmoon

  Maybe the problem lies with the mainly inferior music that the musicians are releasing. In the vinyl days most albums were at worst 50-50 in good to filler ratio. Most had great songs that weren't played on the radio but became favorites after the purchase. There were some releases (Moody Blues, Yes) that didn't have breaks except for turning over the record. I now understand why 45s were so favored before the LP, you could just buy what you wanted for a buck. Ironic that $.99 downloads are making inroads 50 years later at the almost exact price. RIAA's problem is simply greed coupled with crappy music. I can't remember the last CD I purchased that I truly enjoyed, ergo I seldom buy them anymore. It seems to be happening globally and that's why they're running scared. It didn't matter much to RIAA when we dubbed music onto tape from albums borrowed from friends: the quality deteriorated at each dub. Digital changed the world and here we are at this impasse. Bring back the "Stones", oops they never left.

  16.12.2005 00:44 #14

• bill038

  You want to get music and be legal? Ever hear of Allof MP3?How much does it cost to download music from AllOFMP3.com?
  The price of the files that you download is determined by their quality that is by the file size and type.
  
  The price of 1 Mb is 0.02 USD.
  
  You will NOT be charged for either previewing tracks or for the encoding process.
  This is legal.

  16.12.2005 05:46 #15

• max777

  I was on my notebook the other day at a friends condo and found 2 open wireless connections I was able to connect to and fileshare. I'm hoping IP address starts to mean less and less.

  16.12.2005 06:46 #16

• rsims17

  "Performance rights collections totalled $US493 million in 2004 - up 4.5% on 2003 and up 19% over the past five years. IFPI estimates that potential revenues from the sector could more than double its current value over the next five years."
  
  that is a direct quote froma press release by the ifpi, they appear to be the riaa's big brother and claim to have the most accurate statistics about the industry. so by there own account the industry is up be amazing amounts they go on to credit that to the online licensing. theoretically cd says could be down but the overall says have been increasing thanks to say itunes or the others. so anyone taht took high school stat can tell the RIAA is just using data manipulation to make them look like the victim... poor RIAA your so poor and in need of help 493 million... guess its just not enough would you like my flesh off my bones or the blood from my viens too you sick greedy bastards. rot in hell

  16.12.2005 06:59 #17

• DVDdoug

  mkaseatgb & Rikoshay,
  
  The RIAA is NOT government run agency. It's a TRADE GROUP. That's like a club, but it's members are not individuals. You have to be a corporation to join. Almost all of their income (so far) comes from dues.
  
  I assume it's a non-profit organization. This doesn't mean it's a charity, it just means that the "shareholders" or members cannot divide-up the profits. Non-profits don't call extra money "profit"... It's called a "surplus", and it has to stay in the organization's accounts or be spent on salaries and expenses.
  
  Interesting calculation, buga. I'll bet that they end-up paying their lawyers more than they actually collect. The lawyers always win! They are going to loose some of the cases, and they will drop others where the defendant doesn't have the means to pay the RIAA's legal expenses if they win.
  
  I doubt that the RIAA expects to make money off this... The goal is to scare-off file sharers.
  
  

  16.12.2005 10:09 #18

• sssharp

  If you want a good variety of music check out live365. They always have different variety and good music, plus its free. I found by accident one day and was hearing music that radio stations will never play.

  16.12.2005 12:05 #19

• Rikoshay

  To dz50 or anybody else; the one album I feel that you can listen to through the whole thing without skipping any track is from Matisyahu in his albume "Shake Off the Dust... ARISE". It's the only album I've recently listened to more than once without skipping any track.
  
  From DVDdoug
  Quote:I assume it's a non-profit organization.Assumptions may more or less be wrong, but I'm in no position to tell you wrong, since I don't know myself, but this does make some sense. If they are just trying to enforce the laws, it's nothing that any other abiding citizen or person would ignore, but I still think that they are going after the wrong people. They should at least tell the record companies why they aren't making any money. It doesn't take a genius that people don't like hearing something that they have to hear every day from the car right next to them. Just give the people what they want, something that suits their interest individually and make it affordable.

  16.12.2005 15:18 #20

• jdeboer

  but its so easy...

  16.12.2005 18:22 #21

• whammo

  I understand everyone's concern about this, but the one thing that I'm concerned about is the invasion of privacy.
  
  Taking information from your computer without a warrant should render any evidence inadmissable in any court.
  
  The general user has an expectation of privacy that can't be ignored. Physical evidence seized from your home? The police must SHOW you the warrant before they can take such evidence.
  
  I'm surprised that no one has ever mentioned that in court.

  17.12.2005 03:31 #22

• Mt_Funky

  Torrent files-
  
  Do people get sued for downloading these usually?
  

  Newbie restrictions to limited posting is lame!! Who spams anymore, come on!!
  
  ~Dimensional Funk

  17.12.2005 05:22 #23

• Chavo

  I have never purchased a music CD in my entire life. Its just too expensive.

  17.12.2005 13:11 #24

• Mik3h

  Yes people can still caught just as easily with BitTorrent. If you're scared of getting caught, get PG2 - PeerGuardian 2.
  
  Or the best way is just not to use P2P..
  
  -Mike

  17.12.2005 14:11 #25

• Donuts

  DVDdoug, You wrote that all the money from the lawsuits stays within the RIAA. However, are P2P users not sued for "damages"?? This implies that this money would be used to pay the artist (but mostly the record company)monies that would have otherwise been earnt through CD sales. If this is not the case, why should even those found "guilty" pay anything to the RIAA? [I think you have made a mistake about money staying inside the RIAA]

  17.12.2005 15:55 #26

• Rikoshay

  From whammo Quote:I understand everyone's concern about this, but the one thing that I'm concerned about is the invasion of privacy. I can totally agree with you on that.

  17.12.2005 15:59 #27

• rsims17

  @ Rikoshay
  
  Ok ill bite how does the patriot act tie into the RIAA tracking down IP's of people uploading on p2p?

  17.12.2005 16:52 #28

• Rikoshay

  You know what, nevermind. I'm just going to edit this and just quit trying to debate this. I'm not in any position to say anything further.

  17.12.2005 17:18 #29

• tmart

  okay, if your not going to buy it, don't blame it on artists making bad music. if it were bad you wouldn't download it. and until you go write something better, go buy yourself some classic rock and don't download the new "crap".

  17.12.2005 17:27 #30

• rsims17

  wow dude i would honestly love to see any reports news articles anything about that. the only thing the RIAA has to do to find out who is connected to what IP is a court order so they subpoena the ISP for the client info about IP address whatever. patriot act doesnt tie in to that in anyway. may assume terrorists are bootleging? wow im pretty sure the common assumption is the money is from drug money and the royal families that have more oil than god. There are known royal families to give the terrorists cells millions to do what they do. i doubt osama can get a wifi signal in his cave.

  17.12.2005 17:29 #31

• rsims17

  @ tmart
  
  well said if it sucks why would you download it anyway. however i believe they were trying to say that 2 songs on a cd are amazing and then the other 12 sound like the artist is dropping logs on the mic. i wont pay 15 for 2 songs, and thats why itunes is making a killing.

  17.12.2005 17:32 #32

• tmart

  rsims: agreed. i download music too, but i also buy just as many cds as before. and like you said, itunes and all the other places that sell by the song are you fix for one hit wonders. i'm just saying that those of you proclaiming your reason for downloading music to be that it sucks: that's just lame.

  17.12.2005 17:42 #33

• Mik3h

  You'll find that most people who download music, are the people who actually buy most music!
  
  -Mike

  17.12.2005 23:17 #34

• Rikoshay

  You're right. I bought an album just this Sunday. I also bought 2 albums earlier this year, and I bought them in good taste. It's just that a lot of things are not available to me, and I'd rather just download a song for free that I won't listen to after like one time.

  18.12.2005 00:38 #35

• munx

  This is what im thinking. Lets say you live next to a university or in a neighbiorhood. With a cantenna and wifi you can get signal from far distances. so imagine, i download on somebody's open connection and they dont know about it. they get sued because the actual ip downloading the information will relate back to their router. pretty simple to download stuff. i presume so....who gets in trouble????

  19.12.2005 04:02 #36

• DaOsT

  has no one fought it out in a court of law yet??
  

  ::LivE ForeveR OR DiE TryiN!!::....::DonT FinD US WE WilL FinD YoU::..
  ChecK OuT ThE PenguiN GamE AnD PosT YouR HighesT DistancE ON ThE ForuM
  http://www.gazholland.co.uk

  19.12.2005 08:45 #37

• icecold69

  well thats 1 more week that has gone by and thats 1 more cd that i did not buy. mpaa are you getting what i'am saying. there not that smart really if you thank about it if you sell 1 cd at 20.00 thats 20.00 - the lawers fee for sueing a 12yr old. but if you sell 3 cds at say 8.00 thats 24.00 4.00 more and leave the 12yr old kid alone see no lawers fee you will make more money this way dumbasses and the 20.00 cd i did not it this week so thats 0.00 + the lawers fee so you lost again. whats your next job working for the state department buying hammers for say 1000.00 dollars a hammer.

  19.12.2005 14:17 #38

• Mik3h

  ^^
  
  MPAA - Motion Picture Association Of America
  RIAA - Recording Industry Association Of America
  
  -Mike

  20.12.2005 02:37 #39