ingement” is up to $100,000 for each song that was downloaded using Napster (France). Obviously the RIAA is not going to prosecute everyone that broke this law, because there is no way of tracking down everyone. The RIAA has not produced any viable statistics, only statements and claims. Besides, Napster is principally used to sample artists and/or songs, if the user likes the sample then the CD will be bought. ”Word of Web is infinitely more efficient that word of mouth” (Dyson). A lot of the songs on the Napster community are unsigned bands that need the free publicity. “Word of Web” requires rules and standards that have not been created yet.New bills have been introduced before the courts to try and distinguish what is legal or illegal to download. One such bill is the Digital Millennium Copyright act; as a result of this act the accused Web sites can not be sued for illegal activity, but it is legal to prosecute the user of the service (France). Also, under the same act, the Web site is required to police the information, which is being put on the site (France). Napster is trying to rebuttal this claim because it is not a Web site it is an Internet service provider. Another bill is the Music Owners’ Listening Rights Act of 2000, which ensures the “users’ rights to access the music they lawfully own via the Internet at any time from any place,” (“EFF…”). This bill allows music listeners to be protected from the threats of recording industries. It also guarantees the advancement of technology instead of the punishment of blazing a new path. No matter how many bills are passed the technology is still out there, so it will not stop fans from swapping songs and artists. As the American justice system tries to crackdown on the “piracy,” it makes threats towards everyone using the Internet. Napster’s attorneys said that this program could be used as ...
