The Recording Industry Association of America has brought its fight against file-sharing to university networks, and Georgetown is on the hit list. University Spokesperson Julie Green Bataille confirmed Tuesday that three Georgetown network users are being sued in the latest round of RIAA legal action.
The RIAA, which alleges that the availability of free music online has severely depressed CD sales, began suing individual users last year. The 532 lawsuits issued Tuesday, however, specifically target universities.
In the past several years, file-sharing via peer-to-peer networks such as Kazaa, Grokster, Bearshare and Limewire has become popular on college campuses. “Obviously, college students are a big part of the problem, and therefore it was only a question of time before university users would be named as defendants,” RIAA President Cary Sherman said Wednesday.
Users on 21 university networks, including George Washington University, Universtiy of Maryland and George Mason University, are being sued this month. Sherman said the most active users would be more likely to be sued, although he could not give numbers. In this round, he said, defendants were sharing an average of 837 files.
These are the first lawsuits on university networks, but the RIAA has been sending “takedown notices” to usernames instructing them to stop sharing files and uninstall their software. If they comply, no further action is taken. However, Sherman said that users might not receive a “takedown notice” before being sued.
The main goal in these lawsuits is to educate the public, according to Sherman. “This is not a revenue-generating exercise. We’re trying to send a message that the activity is illegal and can have consequences,” he said.
According to Sherman, the RIAA has settled roughly 400 cases this year, usually for about $3000. None of the cases have yet gone to trial. If they should, however, the defendants could be liable for between “statutory damages” of up to $150,000, he said.
However, the lawsuits don’t seem to be discouraging many. Even though a poll conducted by Peter Hart Research Associates found that 50 percent of students are “supportive and understanding” of RIAA lawsuits, student reactions suggest that the lawsuits are having the opposite effect.
“It think its a bunch of junk. I think it’s stupid,” said Kevin Joyce (MSB ‘05). “To sue all these people for something that basically shouldn’t be illegal is ridiculous.”
Jenna Libersky(SFS ‘06) said she understood the recording industry’s position, but she is not sympathetic. “CD’s are so overpriced. I refuse to pay $20 for three good songs that I’m going to listen to for a week,” she said. “I guess as long as it’s still available, I’ll use it.”
A federal judge ruled late last year that the RIAA cannot subpoena individual user names without violating the privacy of the users. Since then, the organization has been suing IP addresses, the numerical identifiers assigned to every computer that logs on to the Internet. It then subpoenas the Internet Service Provider to learn the identity of the offending user.
According to Bataille, Georgetown has not yet received a subpoena for information. “As with any legal matter, Georgetown would review any subpoena served on the University and respond appropriately, consistent with our legal obligations,” Bataille said.
GWU Spokesman Matthew Nehmer confirmed that George Washington also has not received a request for information. “The University understands that these are ‘John Doe’ actions, and, as such, we expect that we will receive a subpoena seeking information as to the identity of the individuals alleged to have been involved in illegal activity,” a GWU statement read.
Bataille said that copyright issues are addressed in Georgetown’s Computer Systems Acceptable Use Policy. She emphasized, however, that it is the individuals, and not the University, who are being sued. The University will not be involved in the litigation, she said, and the individuals will be responsible for their own representation.
