As a result of new efforts by the Recording Industry Association of America to target online piracy at colleges nationwide, downloading music illegally may prove costly for more students.
Industry officials began their new campaign at the end of February by sending 400 “pre-settlement litigation” notices to universities, including UCLA, requesting that they be forwarded to the affected network user, according to an RIAA press release.
The notices offer accused downloaders the chance to settle claims from record companies “at a discounted rate” within 20 days to avoid formal legal action.
The RIAA declined to disclose specific settlement figures, but The Associated Press reported that previous case settlements were about $4,000 to $5,000. Federal copyright laws can impose fines of $750 to $150,000 per work infringed.
UCLA has received at least nine of these notices, said Kenn Heller, assistant dean of students.
Though UCLA has received fewer notices than some other universities nationwide, the House of Representative’s Judiciary Committee has asked Jim Davis, associate vice chancellor for information technology and UCLA’s chief information officer, to testify on the issue.
Phil Hampton, a UCLA spokesman, said Davis is set to speak before a House subcommittee on Thursday. He could not discuss the actual testimony because it has not yet been made public, but he said Davis was asked to testify specifically because of the measure UCLA has taken to combat illegal downloading. Hampton cited the Get Legal campaign, which offers alternatives to illegal downloading, as an example of those measures.
“UCLA and Jim (Davis) were asked to participate because UCLA was a leader in taking proactive steps,” Hampton said.
Heller said the notifications of the RIAA’s legal approach differ from the previous Digital Millennium Copyright Act complaints, which included details of the alleged copyright infringement, such as the software used, file downloaded and time and date of the incident.
Those complaints usually led to disciplinary action by the university, which Heller said can allow the school to shield students from legal action.
But the new complaints only notify universities of an Internet protocol address accused of copyright infringement. The university can choose to identify the user and alert them of the possibility of a pending lawsuit.
Heller said other University of California campuses have received notices, and the UC Office of the President is considering how to handle the cases.
“We’re evaluating the situation. We’ve heard from some of the campuses and we’re aware that some students have gotten these notices,” said Jennifer Ward, UC spokeswoman.
She added that university officials are waiting to collect all information about file sharing within the UC system, such as final counts of pre-litigation notices, before deciding on how to proceed.
“We’re working quickly to assess the situation,” she said.
Heller said UCLA has received over 800 copyright-violation complaints since June 2004, though the number of second-time offenders has dropped.
Steven Marks, general counsel and executive vice president for the RIAA, said during an online conference with college journalists last week that the notifications were part of a new initiative.
“Unfortunately, holding people responsible through legal actions has proven the best deterrent to this continued illegal and harmful activity,” he said.
The industry’s new vigilant approach could be interpreted as a grave warning for college students, Heller said.
“Now is the time for students to realize the RIAA is serious about (illegal downloading),” he said. “The probability that you will be identified has gone up.”
Jessie Zhang, a first-year applied mathematics student, said she deleted LimeWire off her computer.
“I’m really concerned about the lawsuits,” she said. “I couldn’t afford any settlement and for me, a few songs isn’t worth (being sued).”
With reports from Bruin wire services.