The Recording Industry Association of America issued a new round
of copyright infringement lawsuits for illegal file sharing last
week, which includes seven UCLA students out of a total of 91
students nationwide.
This second wave of lawsuits, issued May 26, was targeted
against users of Internet2 ““ a specialized high-speed network
used by university students ““ and marks the first time UCLA
students have been the recipients of such legal action.
Students from 33 schools, including UC Berkeley, Davis and San
Diego, have been sued this time around, according to the RIAA.
“As long as students continue to corrupt this specialized
academic network for the flagrant theft of music, we will continue
to make it clear that there are consequences for these unlawful
actions,” said Cary Sherman, president of the RIAA in a press
release.
The RIAA also filed lawsuits last week against an additional 649
“John Doe” individuals who have distributed copyrighted
music illegally using peer-to-peer services like Kazaa, LimeWire
and Grokster.
To date, over 11,000 lawsuits for illegal file sharing have been
filed by the RIAA since the recording industry’s legal
campaign began in September 2003.
UCLA issued a response last Thursday to the RIAA’s legal
actions acknowledging the notice of the lawsuits and asking
students not to engage in illegal file sharing.
“UCLA considers illegal file sharing an important concern
and strives continuously to resolve this very complex issue,”
according to a May 26 UCLA press release.
The school also wants to “work on the challenging and
ever-evolving issue of illegal file sharing,” the press
release reported.
In April, the RIAA launched its first lawsuits against Internet2
users and university students from 18 different campuses, but no
UCLA students were targeted then.
UCLA does not actively monitor the Internet activity of its
students, said Associate Vice Chancellor for Information Technology
Jim Davis.
The school only takes action if there are claims of illegal file
sharing.
“We are obligated by law to respond to these
subpoenas,” Davis said, meaning the university must turn over
any documentation that can show UCLA students have engaged in
illegal file sharing. Otherwise, UCLA itself could become the
object of a lawsuit.
But, “it’s not our preference that we get
subpoenas,” Davis said.
According to the No Electronic Theft Act, which is concerned
with copyright violations that involve digital recordings, criminal
penalties can be as high as five years in prison for sharing
copyrighted music, in addition to $250,000 in fines if a person is
sharing more than $2,500 worth of music, regardless if the file
sharing was done for profit or not. Furthermore, individuals may
face civil charges and statutory damages which may run up to
$150,000 per work infringed.
Also, the minimal penalty per song is $750 and civil penalties
can run individuals into thousands of dollars in damages and legal
fees.
Davis said UCLA plays an important role in “keeping the
campus aware of this issue” and helps students
“understand the ramifications of this.”
To decrease illegal file sharing, UCLA instituted a
“quarantine” system in April 2004.
First-time offenders have their computers’ Internet access
blocked, though students still have continued access to UCLA
services, such as MyUCLA.
Violators are also sent an e-mail requesting them to remove all
illegally obtained copyrighted material. The e-mail also explains
the ramifications of a repeat offense.
Students must acknowledge electronically that they have engaged
in illegal file sharing.
Repeat offenders will have their Internet access blocked, in
addition to their names being sent to the dean of students.
The quarantine process has led to “a significant decrease
in the number of repeat offenses,” the May 26 press release
said.
Davis believes the RIAA and the Motion Picture Association of
America will continue to take legal action in the future.
“Both are very serious about the i2hub technology,”
he said, referring to the application used to access the Internet2
network.