Beyond Napster
By Tara Nichols
Most music lovers out there have heard of Napster and are familiar with the
controversy surrounding this music file-sharing company originated by Shawn
Fanning. Napster is a program that allows users to share MP3s with anyone else
who might be connected. Napster offers communication forums and search engines
to ease the music hunt.
The controversy over this program centers on the copyright infringement that
occurs. As a result, the Record
Industry Association of America (RIAA) has been one of the key players in
demolishing the Napster empire. The RIAA, in conjunction with numerous artists
such as Metallica, combined forces to dispute the service Napster was providing,
regardless of the fact that Napster was merely a highway of sorts for the information
being shared. Napster didn’t actually host any of the music, but simply
made it possible for people everywhere to share.
However, in such a situation, the artists and producers who are responsible
for making the music in question were not receiving what they believed was their
just compensation. As the lawsuit indicated on behalf of the recording artists,
why should anyone go to the store and buy an album when they could download
it for free?
On the other side of the debate are a slew of consumers who have petitioned
to keep Napster, and programs like it,
alive and kicking. Who wouldn’t like to access music free of charge and
decide which tracks to keep and which to skip over while creating their own
perfect album?
The debate and lawsuits surrounding Napster finally forced it to sell out. Roxio,
a software producer, bid $5.3 million in cash for the rights to the Napster
name and portfolio. They receive all of Napster’s technology and acclaim,
and none of the liabilities. Roxio says that it will be announcing its plans
for Napster in the upcoming months. If you visit the Napster
website now, all you will find is an “Under Construction” sign.
The root of the fuss over Napster is piracy. Piracy is the illegal access of
programs or software or files of any kind without payment of royalties for copyright
use. While piracy is a general term and is most often used with computer software,
it is also relevant to music and the MP3 file-sharing programs. People have
shared and accessed millions of songs and albums without the permission of the
artist or label through the use of Napster software and other sites like it.
Piracy through new techniques such as the ones employed by Napster and others
using the Internet are a fairly new phenomenon and is still partially in the
investigatory stage. However, there are several laws and policies in effect.
The No Electronic Theft Act (NET Act) clearly states that the government can
prosecute software pirates and anyone who willfully violates copyright laws,
even in the absence of monetary gain. But the extremely widespread scale of
the Internet and those who participate in such activities make it extremely
hard to find and prosecute violators. Most of the violators are average citizens
in their homes, many unaware they are involved in copyright violation. In such
cases, the government can’t very well track these activities without major
privacy violation.
David Knopfler, author of Piracy on the Web warns, “To those
who think musical piracy in the form of the MP3 controversy is a big deal, I’m
here to say, you ain’t seen nothing. There’s a far bigger wave heading
to shore and it’s packed with illegal surfers.”
With the demise of Napster, the music downloading public has not been left without.
Other companies have stepped in to take Napster’s place. Programs such
as Kazaa and WinMX offer much of the same music and MP3 file sharing capability
that Napster did.
WinMX, one of the most powerful file sharing programs out there, offers full
chat capabilities, multiple docking window interfaces, ability to connect to
multiple OpenNap networks simultaneously, and is compatible with most LAN (local
area network) configurations. While the speed is sometimes lowered, these options
boost its attraction.
Kazaa, a European-based company, has no central hub like Napster did. With the
absence of a central server, Kazaa has developed a multi-layered network which
results in faster and more powerful search and download options. However, even
Kazaa has not been immune to pressure from the courts. Niklas Zennestrom, Kazaa’s
founder, voluntarily halted Kazaa distribution while he has his own battle with
the courts.
The debate over file sharing is ongoing. On the one hand are the artists who
want and deserve compensation for their work and who believe their work belongs
to them. These artists suggest that the ultimate penalty for listeners will
be less music if musicians are deprived of their ability to make a living. On
the other hand is the general public who either deems music to be the property
of all, who simply do not want to pay for it, or have come to the conclusion
that the commercial music business is now too expensive.
One has to decide for him or herself if they think these programs entail crime
before deciding to use one. A personal judgment call must be made. If he/she
decides to move onward and utilize one of these programs, complete background
searches and user review searches are key tactics in choosing the one right
for them. In any case, a major transformation is now taking place in the music
business with the full outcome yet to be determined.
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Copyright © by Tara Nichols. All rights reserved.
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