p2pnet - rss feed: RIAA times out in p2p case
p2pnet.net news:- In the latest installment of the Debbie Foster versus Warner Music, EMI, Vivendi Universal and Sony BMG saga, the Big 4’s RIAA has finally run out of time to explain why it hasn’t yet turned over its lawyers’ billing records for the case.
Foster prevailed against the RIAA and as part of her victory, she was awarded attorneys’ fees of $55,000 several months back.
The RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) was asked for its fee
documents almost exactly a year ago.
It now has until March 1 to to respond to the motion Foster’s attorney made last week to compel the RIAA to turn over all of its lawyers’ billing records on the case, says Recording Industry vs The People. If it fails to come through this time, Foster could by default be awarded every penny she’s asking for.
The RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America), “acted in bad faith in bringing the lawsuit against Debbie Foster,” said Marilyn D. Barringer-Thomson, representing her.
The so-called ‘trade’ organization dropped the case, but Foster refused to do the same and became the “prevailing party” under the Copyright Act, meaning she was entitled to attorneys’ fees.
Ironically, although the RIAA has so far sued some 20,000 American men, women and children, and although the initials are short for Recording Industry Association of America, only one of the Big 4, Warner, can be said to be American, and even it is headed up by a Canadian.
The other members of the Big 4 Organized Music cartel are EMI (Britain), Vivendi Universal (France) and Sony BMG (Japan and Germany).
The multi-billion-dollar Big 4 claim they’re being ruined by their own former customers such as Foster whom they call “criminals” and “thieves,” accusing them of the non-existent crime of file sharing and saying the lawsuits are successful, forcing people away from the independent online services and p2p networks from which the vast majority of online music lovers get their fixes.
P2p research firm Big Champagne watches what’s happening and tracks events in the peer-to-peer world.
“We have observed no decreases in file sharing activity,” its ceo, Eric Garland, told p2pnet recently, continuing, “On the contrary, the aggressive growth in popularity of BitTorrent clients (and increases in gnutella users by way of Limewire et al) demonstrate very much the opposite.
“While proportionally the growth rate in file sharing of film and television (and other multimedia) now exceeds that of popular music, we have observed no net decline in music, and music remains the most popular entertainment on P2P networks.
“There are nearly ten million people using only the most popular networks at any given time (to say nothing of private, invitation only, small group sharing etc.) and there are - very conservatively speaking - more than a billion files a month. The IFPI and RIAA project the volume of downloads to be far greater than that (estimates approaching 3 billion/month), but we do not know the basis of these projections.”
Also See:
prevailed against the RIAA - RIAA balks in Foster case, February 23, 2007
Recording Industry vs The People - Judge Gives RIAA Until Thursday March 1st to Respond to Motion, February 27, 2007
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Tired of being treated like a criminal? They depend on you, not the other way around. Don’t buy their ‘product’. Do bug your local politicians. Use emails, snail-mail, phone calls, faxes, IM, stop them in the street, blog. And if you’re into organizing, organize petitions, organize demonstrations and then turn up on your local political rep’s doorstep, making sure you’ve contacted your local tv/radio station/newspaper in advance. Don’t just complain. Do something!
