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53 °F 5 Day Forecast Saturday, November 29, 2003 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | eSouthernOregon | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find a Rental Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Email Story to a Friend October 12, 2003 Chris, 18, of Medford, searches for songs using a file sharing program on his home computer. The screen is an example of a menu of songs available on downloading sites. Mail Tribune / Jim Craven Point, Click, Steal By DAMIAN MANN Mail Tribune Music lovers like to think of it as sharing, but the record industry says downloading songs from the Internet is just plain stealing. Brenda, a Central Point mother of three, confesses that she, like two of her children, has joined the ranks of Americans who have pirated music online. She doesn’t let her children listen to songs with bad words in them; but until recently, she had turned a blind eye to the question of stealing. "It is kind of ripping them (the music industry) off," admits Brenda, whose son has downloaded Christian songs. "On the whole, it’s not the right thing to do." Advertisement Brenda (who, like the other downloaders interviewed for this story, requested her last name be withheld) is part of a growing problem for the record industry, which has filed lawsuits against Internet downloading sites. Downloaders are computer users who go on the Internet, find software, music, movies or games and make a copy of them, either legally or illegally. The music industry has subpoenaed the records of 261 people in America — including a 16-year-old girl in Portland — who have copied songs onto the Internet, making them available to other users (called file sharing). "This is illegal activity that people are involved in," said Amanda Collins, spokesperson for the Record Industry Association of America. "The record companies have a right to protect and defend their copyrights." In September, a 12-year-old New York girl was among the first to be sued by the record industry for sharing music over the Internet. Her mother agreed to pay $2,000 to settle the lawsuit, apologizing and admitting that her daughter’s actions violated U.S. copyright laws. With legal threats looming, 17-year-old Jason of Medford said, "I used to do it before everybody started getting caught." He has downloaded 2,000 files, which also include videos, on his computer. "I didn’t see it as illegal," he said. Sharing files is the foundation on which this system of copying songs is able to survive, he said. "This is how this thing works," he said. "It’s millions of people using it." His 18-year-old friend, Chris, started copying songs about two years ago from Napster, but when it got shut down he switched to another downloading site, Winmx.com. He now uses Bearshare.com. "I pretty much figure all the songs are copyrighted," said Chris. He has stored 1,700 files on his computer, which includes 1,600 songs and 100 videos. With high-speed Internet access, he can download a song in a matter of seconds and an entire album in 10 to 15 minutes. "I like it personally," he said. "It’s more convenient to download that one song you like than paying $20 for a CD." Although some large retailers might sell CDs cheaper than that, Chris said the songs are sometimes edited, with expletives deleted. Neither Chris nor Jason said they have shared files online — something the record industry has cracked down on. "Right now we’re just concentrating our efforts on uploaders," said Collins. Uploaders are computer users who record music from a CD or other copyrighted source and make it available for others on the Internet. The record industry doesn’t have any immediate plans in the works to go after people who download software, she said. Collins said the record industry has noticed a 31 percent reduction in business during the past three years, partially attributable to the downloading phenomenon. Jason Tarrant, sales and marketing manager for the Medford-based Internet provider InternetCDS, said the music industry has only itself to blame for its problems. "They are pissing and moaning, but the people are complaining they are putting out a substandard product," he said, citing the poor quality of both the artists and music. "Quite frankly I despise the music industry of America," he said. The record companies tailor their product to the young, but it is the young who make up the majority of people who are downloading, he said. Tarrant said the music industry should have jumped on the technological bandwagon, rather than battling the consumer and businesses like Napster. "They did it with bully-boy tactics," he said. "Had they embraced Napster back then, and got bold with it, they would be making money hand over fist now," he said. No matter what steps the industry takes to prevent the downloading of music, movies or other material, someone will find a way around it, he said. "You’ve got a lot of pissed-off hackers," he said. "So the minute you shut one door, they will open another." Tarrant said his company has had very little contact from the music industry about the downloading problem. In one case, InternetCDS received a complaint from a movie studio that someone was making bootleg copies of "Spider-Man." "Basically it was a kid doing it and his parents had no clue," Tarrant said. However, this kind of complaint from the movie or recording industry is rare for his company. "Most of the times it’s been a warning rather than a heavy hand," he said. Responding to Tarrant’s complaints about the music industry, Collins said, "Perhaps we’re a little late to the table but we’re there now." She said a number of Web sites are devoted to the legal downloading of music, pointing out that some of the sites have parental controls that can be used to help filter songs that have objectionable materials. One organization, Musicunited.net, will help parents understand copyright laws, and religious organizations also have joined the effort to educate consumers about the pitfalls of downloading. Another Central point mother, Brandy, said she didn’t realize recording songs from the Internet could be illegal. She remembers taping recordings of albums when she was younger and didn’t see any problem with it. "If it’s illegal, why is it so easy to do?" she wondered. Her son records music, including Christian songs. "It’s not like he’s making money off of it," Brandy said. Both Brandy and Brenda say it’s not easy to determine whether a song is copyrighted. But Brenda, after reflecting on her family’s practice of downloading from the Internet, said she won’t let her children do it anymore. "I wouldn’t let kids steal from the market, so why let them do it from the Internet?" she said. Sites for sounds — legally Downloading unauthorized music off the Internet is a crime, but there are plenty of sites where you can get the music for a price. There also is a site — musicunited.net — where parents and children can obtain more information about copyright laws as well as authorized download sites. According to Musicunited, "The unauthorized reproduction and distribution of copyrighted music is just as illegal as shoplifting." Criminal penalties for first-time offenders can be as high as five years in prison and $250,000 in fines. Civil penalties can run into many thousands of dollars in damages and legal fees. The minimum penalty is $750 a song. Following is a few of the Web sites where music can be sampled and legally downloaded: www.apple.com/music www.audiocandy.com www.catsmusic.com www.mp3.com www.musicnet.com www.musicrebellion.com www.facethemusic.com Reach reporter Damian Mann at 776-4476, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2003 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback 3 WEEKS FREE! ADVERTISERS SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Real Estate Showcase Food for Thought Hike of the Week Wellness Connection Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Openings Prime Times