AfterDawn: News

Teen files lawsuit against record industry

A New York teen has filed a lawsuit against the record industry for defamation, violating anti-trust laws, conspiring to defraud the courts and making extortionate threats. The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has called this kid a pirate and so the five record companies filed a lawsuit against him. Robert Santangelo would have been 11 when the alleged offense was committed.

He has denied sharing music with P2P file sharing networks and has said it is "impossible" for the RIAA to prove otherwise. He claims in his defense that any music the RIAA alleged that he pirated, he already owned himself on a store-bought retail CD. Robert and his lawyer, Jordan Glass, have demanded a jury trial and filing a counterclaim against the companies for allegedly damaging the boy's reputation, distracting him from school and costing him legal fees.



"The record companies have engaged in a wide-ranging conspiracy to defraud the courts of the United States," the court documents say. The teen says that the record companies are acting together in violation of the antitrust laws by bringing the piracy cases jointly and using the same agency "to make extortionate threats ... to force defendants to pay."

Source:
The Inquirer

Written by: James Delahunty @ 31 Jan 2007 13:02

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• 27 comments

• ZippyDSM

  Go get im!

  31.1.2007 13:22 #1

• limelight

  lets hope this kid is right, or its just another point for the RIAA.

  31.1.2007 13:36 #2

• chickenR

  nice one! good luck to him!

  31.1.2007 13:38 #3

• AlBundy

  I wish I could be there at his trail or that I could afford to give him so $$$ for this. I wish he and others all the luck.

  31.1.2007 13:42 #4

• Auslander

  yes. fight back! way to go, robby.

  31.1.2007 13:59 #5

• tabletpc

  awesome
  
  

  31.1.2007 14:33 #6

• Pop_Smith

  This is the stuff I like to see! How true it is though. They threaten you to pay or face a lawsuit and thats illegal in American. As far as I know that could be even called blackmail (or something like it).
  
  I wish this kid the best of luck. If anyone finds out a way to donate to him to help pay his legal fees please let me know.

  31.1.2007 14:45 #7

• slmh1296

  I got a great idea we should all get together pull a bounch of money and find a bunch like a couple of thousand pepole to all sue the RIAA at the same time could you imagine what that would do to them.

  31.1.2007 14:48 #8

• kabledog

  ...............I got a great idea we should all get together pull a bounch of money and find a bunch like a couple of thousand pepole to all sue the RIAA at the same time could you imagine what that would do to them................
  
  Its called a class action suit and it is very possible for a community like this to fiule one. All you need is a legitimate list of plaintiffs and a lawyer willing to take it to court.

  31.1.2007 14:55 #9

• bzboarder

  i wish this kid the best of luck... he's definitely going to need it. the RIAA has 2 things on its side: lots and lots of money, and lots of high priced lawyers. but i hope this kid wins, id even be willing to donate to his cause.

  31.1.2007 15:12 #10

• Pride1

  Bout time someone fought back, kudos to you kid and lots of luck

  31.1.2007 15:14 #11

• SovMish

  Kudos to this young man indeed! Rape the RIAA like they keep raping us!

  31.1.2007 19:38 #12

• elusiv1

  Good Luck Robby, go kick there asses!!!!

  1.2.2007 03:48 #13

• bennyb815

  I agree! Go get em man, good luck!

  1.2.2007 07:13 #14

• solarf

  Wishing you the best of luckman.

  1.2.2007 12:55 #15

• borhan9

  Well done Robert. I wish you all the best.

  1.2.2007 15:56 #16

• Blackjax

  More power to you Robert!!!!!!!!!!!
  
  Too bad the main stream media won't report on this.....but then again *hint of sarcasm* I wonder why?
  
  I personally haven't bought a cd (retail) from a store in over ten years, believe it or not! Too much garbage for the price.

  1.2.2007 19:10 #17

• ChiefBrdy

  RIAA, go get him! Next you can hit all the nursery schools in LA. Another good place is Chuck E Cheese. I hear those birtday parties are havens for 7 yr. old pirates.
  
  You have sunk to a new low, you obsence cockroaches. I hope you all die of cancer!

  4.2.2007 09:23 #18

• wetsparks

  Good luck to this kids lawyers, like someone else mentioned, the RIAA has plenty of them that are paid very well because they are good.

  4.2.2007 10:20 #19

• madUKan

  He should, or his guardian/laywer should set up a web page and donations through paypal, although you have to think for it to get this far he must have a sponsor.
  
  O and good luck

  4.2.2007 11:08 #20

• scorpNZ

  Considering he was a minor when the "alleged"...lol... offending took place how can he be sued in the first place

  4.2.2007 11:24 #21

• AUDIOMIND

  is this kid taking donations?
  
  

  4.2.2007 16:12 #22

• ChappyTTV

  This is definately an uphill battle the young man is about to fight, but I'm sure we ALL wish him
  GOOD LUCK!!!
  
  We all root for the Underdog in this type of fight and he's the epitomy of the Underdog here...a young teen taking on the muli-corporation RIAA...wow!
  Good choice going for a JURY trial here too, if they can play upon the sympathies of the jurors they just may pull off the comeback of the decade!

  5.2.2007 16:02 #23

• Blackjax

  I am not starting a political discussion here but did you notice it was in New York? Mostly democratic New York. A lot of working type people. If his attorney is good and gets the right jury seated....
  
  the RIAA portion of the mafiaa may be fitted for some cement boots of their own! Wouldn't that be artistic justice, so to speak.

  7.2.2007 22:21 #24

• flip1221

  I'm sick and tired of big companies raping the little people of this country. It seems that everywhere we look somebody is trying to scheme a way to take our hard earned money. If this kid wins, it will be a small step in taking back our right to freedom in this country.
  
  Good luck little man.

  8.2.2007 07:27 #25

• RNR1995

  I agree with flip1221
  I too am sick of the RIAA
  If they wonder why sales are down, listen to the radio....all the artists SUCK. I have not heard a decent song in years! They sign all these bands that still belong in their parents garage....
  Personally I have about 3 or 4 mp3's I do not care for the quality, the only reason I have them is that the song is not available on CD. NOR would I ever waste my money on some DRM protected crap, that I can only play on what some suit says I can play it on.
  Wake up America!
  We are the consumer, We hold the power in numbers, "We The People"
  QUIT BUYING DRM INCLUDING VISTA!

  10.2.2007 05:19 #26

• RuPtUrE

  I strongly agree. What happened to the days where the whole album was good. The last whole album i heard that was good was "juvenille 400 degree at the most. Now at days only one good song on the whole album. The RIAA wants us consumers to pay 15 bucks or more for one album which is flip flop with one good song. Then they wonder why we pirate just that one song on a p2p network,ftp's, or news servers. Wake up people. We are the one putting money in their banks. If we all quit buying all these cheap albums maybe the artists will wake up and put something good together. Its bad enough it used to cost seven dollars for a movie now they raised it to eight cause of piracy supposedly. Well maybe if prices were decent like five bucks i'd go to the movies and not pay the homie in the corner the five bucks for the bootleg. I just think the industry is starting to suck. So well the only way to go is pirating things now at days. Not anything is really worth paying for. Games, Movies, or Audio Cds.

  18.2.2007 18:45 #27