Everybody Must Get Sued

by admin

Story link: Everybody Must Get Sued

It should be that in a civil law suit, the looser has to pay the legal fees of the winner as well as their own fees.  This might stop some of the frivolous suits that are wearing down the United States legal system.

Some of the worst cases of frivolous suits have been brought on by the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America).  File sharing is becoming more and more popular as internet technology becomes more advanced.  Peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing is the most common.  It allows the files stored on one computer to be used by another and it doesn’t require an upload. 

The problem is that the recording industry says this is an infringement of their copyrights and therefore illegal.  This is true, when the music or movies are not public domain.

But is file sharing really any different from letting a friend borrow your CD to tape her favorite song?  Is the legal stance that the RIAA is now taking really one that says making your girlfriend a blended CD is illegal? 

The recording industry has to make their money and that is not in dispute.  Otherwise, all the mega-stars that are getting paid way more than they are worth might have to get a real job.  But that’s a horse of a different color.

Taking every customer to court that has ever copied or shared a file will only serve to bankrupt the industry.  They are going to have to come up with a new and creative way to distribute their recordings that is as technologically advanced as their consumers.