Weekly Online Lesson Online Lesson Archive Grade Level: 9-12 Subject: Government/Law

Napster on Trial

On Friday July 28, 2000, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued a stay against a preliminary injunction that would have shut down the popular music-sharing web site Napster by midnight that night. Napster allows users free upload and download of digital recorded music in the form of MP3 files.

The recording industry and artists have filed suit against Napster claiming the service threatens the financial integrity of their industry. If you can download your favorite songs for free, why buy the CD? They say it's a violation of copyright law, which gives artists control over sale and distribution of their work.

Napster argues that the personal copying of music is protected by federal law as "fair use."

This week's online lesson is about Napster, the Recording Industry Association of America, and the future of copyright law in the face of new technology.

Recording Industry Association of America

Begin your research by visiting the web site of the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Start with the News section and read the RIAA President Hillary Rosen's statement regarding the preliminary injunction, and the response to the temporary stay.

If you have time and are quite interested, read the RIAA's preliminary injunction brief against Napster (requires Acrobat Reader).

Now turn to the Copyright Basics section of the site. Read the introduction, which explains how copyright law protects intellectual property, and how it has done so for centuries. When did copyright become part of U.S. law, and what was the first "writing" protected by copyright?

Next click Copyright Laws and read the following sections: Introduction, Federal Laws, and State Laws. What is the fair use doctrine and how do you think it apply in this case? From what you have read, what is the basis of the suit against Napster?

Click Digital Music Laws and read about the Audio Home Recording Act of 1992, which essentially allows consumers to legally make digital recordings under certain conditions. Do you believe Napster meets these conditions?

Napster

Turn now to the Napster point of view by visiting the Napster web site. First read the messages to the Napster community by CEO Harry Bank and founder Shawn Fanning. Do you agree with Bank that new technologies like Napster can be a win-win for recording artists?

In the second statement, Bank disagrees with Judge Patel's ruling that one-to-one non-commercial file sharing violates the law. Is this what the judge ruled? Do you think Napster is engaged in one-to-one file sharing or mass file distribution? What is the distinction in terms of copyright law?

Again, if you have some extra time and are quite interested, read Napster's Legal Brief asking for a stay of the preliminary injunction (requires Acrobat Reader).

For an excellent analysis of what the Napster means, or what it could mean to the recording industry, read How VCRs May Help Napster's Legal Fight by Sam Costello. How does the 1984 Supreme Court Decision for Sony vs. Universal apply to the Napster case? At the end of the article, why does Jonathan Tankel suggest that the record companies "have bigger problems than Napster"?

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