Spring Break
Be Wary Of File Sharing On Campus
Our Opinion
Issue date: 2/12/08 Section: Commentary
Uh oh UConn - here come the subpoenas.
As Dean of Students Lee Williams announced in her most recent Dean's Almanac, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has followed through on their promise to be a music pirate's worst nightmare. UConn has now received a subpoena which requires them to divulge the names of those in the university who are guilty of harboring illegally shared files on their personal computers. The administration, as it is bound by law to do, has complied. As of now, only 84 students have received pre-settlement letters asking for payments of $3,000-$6,000 for their contribution in the massive, online peer-to-peer networks.
This is terrible. This is scary. But this is completely legal and warranted, and it is only the beginning.
University students across the country are receiving letters asking that they cough-up the requested sum. The smart ones are recognizing they have been nabbed and also that $3,000 is a discount compared to the value of the music they actually have. The more audacious amongst them have fought the bad fight and have overwhelmingly been defeated, to the tune of higher fines and costly lawyer fees. So far, at least 32 UConn students have accepted the RIAA offer and they will live to fight another day.
Granted, the RIAA is no one's friend. Many of their ideas are an invasion on the freedoms of music owners and Internet users everywhere. DRM limitations, which prevent purchased music from being copied to multiple places, such as to a CD or an iPod, are rapidly disappearing. Another initiative, filtering Internet connections through an Internet service provider or an anti-virus program, is likely to meet resistance because it may affect the subscription rates of those vendors who opt to implement these technologies.
But the RIAA has a winner in this program. It is a nickel-and-dime way to choke off the peer-to-peer networks, but it is a lot easier to fight a nervous student than the creator of a file sharing application. It seems poised to work because not many amongst the student population can stomach the thought of writing a check for upwards of $6000 dollars, or worse yet - forcing their parents to write that same check.
With the delivery of these first settlement packages to UConn students, those who did not receive notices should count themselves lucky. They should also be smart about continuing to share files. No one can guarantee the security of file sharing programs, such as DC++, any longer. The first warning shots have been fired. The cost of file sharing will only get worse from here and students should face this fact - or soon they may have to face the consequences.
As Dean of Students Lee Williams announced in her most recent Dean's Almanac, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has followed through on their promise to be a music pirate's worst nightmare. UConn has now received a subpoena which requires them to divulge the names of those in the university who are guilty of harboring illegally shared files on their personal computers. The administration, as it is bound by law to do, has complied. As of now, only 84 students have received pre-settlement letters asking for payments of $3,000-$6,000 for their contribution in the massive, online peer-to-peer networks.
This is terrible. This is scary. But this is completely legal and warranted, and it is only the beginning.
University students across the country are receiving letters asking that they cough-up the requested sum. The smart ones are recognizing they have been nabbed and also that $3,000 is a discount compared to the value of the music they actually have. The more audacious amongst them have fought the bad fight and have overwhelmingly been defeated, to the tune of higher fines and costly lawyer fees. So far, at least 32 UConn students have accepted the RIAA offer and they will live to fight another day.
Granted, the RIAA is no one's friend. Many of their ideas are an invasion on the freedoms of music owners and Internet users everywhere. DRM limitations, which prevent purchased music from being copied to multiple places, such as to a CD or an iPod, are rapidly disappearing. Another initiative, filtering Internet connections through an Internet service provider or an anti-virus program, is likely to meet resistance because it may affect the subscription rates of those vendors who opt to implement these technologies.
But the RIAA has a winner in this program. It is a nickel-and-dime way to choke off the peer-to-peer networks, but it is a lot easier to fight a nervous student than the creator of a file sharing application. It seems poised to work because not many amongst the student population can stomach the thought of writing a check for upwards of $6000 dollars, or worse yet - forcing their parents to write that same check.
With the delivery of these first settlement packages to UConn students, those who did not receive notices should count themselves lucky. They should also be smart about continuing to share files. No one can guarantee the security of file sharing programs, such as DC++, any longer. The first warning shots have been fired. The cost of file sharing will only get worse from here and students should face this fact - or soon they may have to face the consequences.
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