RIAA Takes Aim At Campus Music Theft

by Glen Shapiro, LawAndTax-News.com, New York

05 March 2007

The Recording Industry Association of America last week launched a new and strengthened campus anti-piracy initiative that significantly expands the scope and volume of its deterrent efforts, while offering a new process that gives students the opportunity to avoid a formal lawsuit by settling prior to a litigation being filed.

The RIAA, on behalf of the major record companies, on Wednesday sent 400 pre-litigation settlement letters to 13 different universities. Each letter informs the school of a forthcoming copyright infringement lawsuit against one of its students or personnel.

The RIAA will request that universities forward those letters to the appropriate network user. Under this new approach, a student (or other network user) can settle the record company claims against him or her at a discounted rate before a lawsuit is ever filed.

The initial wave of the new initiative launched last week included letters in the following quantities sent to: Arizona State University (23 pre-settlement litigation letters), Marshall University (20), North Carolina State University (37), North Dakota State University (20), Northern Illinois University (28), Ohio University (50), Syracuse University (37), University of Massachusetts – Amherst (37), University of Nebraska – Lincoln (36), University of South Florida (31), University of Southern California (20), University of Tennessee – Knoxville (28), and University of Texas – Austin (33).

The RIAA, on behalf of the major record companies, will pursue hundreds of similar enforcement actions against university network users each month.

“We have transformed how we do business, and online music has experienced a sea change compared to three years ago,” observed Mitch Bainwol, Chairman and CEO of the RIAA.

He continued:

“A legal marketplace that barely existed in 2003 is now a billion dollar business showing real promise. Many rogue sites have gone under and fans have a far better understanding of the right and wrong ways to enjoy music. No matter how much we adapt, though, any new business model must always necessarily rely upon a respect for property rights. That’s why we must continue to enforce our rights.”

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