RIAA's Week In Purgatory

It has been another tough week for the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) as it continues to grapple with a waning CD market, and attempts to further rein in the forces of a brave new digital audio world. It didn't help that its website was heckled until it went offline, either.

In a repeat of last year's tumble, the RIAA started off the week announcing that music sales were down again in the first half of this year. The organization says that US CD sales decreased 7% during the first six months of 2002, representing a decline of $284 million in sales. The RIAA reported a drop of 5.3% for the same period last year.

In apparent contradiction to other research results, the RIAA also released statistics from a survey it had commissioned indicating that consumers between the ages of 12 and 54 bought fewer discs as they increased their downloading. Researcher Geoff Garin states, "I would not argue that downloading and copying are the only factors at work, but we have clear evidence that downloading and copying do not have a favorable effect on record sales."

Although not openly acknowledged by the RIAA, analysts say other possible factors contributing to flagging CD sales include the weak economy, high disc prices, lack of compelling new music, DVD-Video, and music fans' disenchantment with the record industry. The RIAA's aggressive stance regarding online file services and the music business' reputation for withholding artist royalties and pensions—to cite only two obvious public relations train wrecks—have fanned increasing resentment on the part of consumers, some of whom have called for an outright boycott of the major labels who fund the RIAA.

Last week also saw renewed commitment from opponents to the RIAA's attempted use of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act to exploit to gain quick and unhindered access to ISP records in order to unmask individual file traders for prosecution. Several groups, including the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), Consumer Alert, the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC), and National Consumers League (NCL), have filed a brief in federal court to deny the RIAA's specific request to obtain user information from Verizon. According to their brief, "Purported copyright owners should not have the right to violate protected, anonymous speech with what amounts to a single snap of the fingers."

The last few years have seen the RIAA file lawsuits against several corporate entities, such as Napster, to prevent file trading. The focus has now apparently shifted to individuals, and the trade group is using the DMCA as its primary weapon to subpoena information about subscribers from ISPs. The brief's author, Megan Gray, comments, "We want the court to determine that the subpoena provision in the DMCA does not apply when the Internet service provider is merely acting as a conduit."

In addition to the brief filed in the Verizon case, the Home Recording Rights Coalition (HRRC) expressed concern last week over indications that the US Department of Justice (DOJ) may be preparing to bring criminal cases against ordinary consumers who engage in file-swapping over the Internet.

The HRRC says it has consistently maintained that, even while certain consumer practices may be controversial, private, noncommercial home recording practices should not be lumped in with piracy. The organization's Gary Shapiro said, "Ever since the Betamax case was filed, it has been vital to maintain the distinction between consumers engaging in private, noncommercial use of copyrighted material and large-scale pirates. Sharing over the Internet has encouraged some content-owners to try to obliterate this distinction. But every time the entertainment industry or the government has accused average consumers of being copyright criminals, the accusers have had to back off, and with good reason."

And then, finally, for the second time in recent weeks, the RIAA website was hacked. The hackers substituted bogus headlines on the site, proclaiming, "RIAA is willing to try alternative approach to music-sharing services." The hacked site also included links to a variety of music download sites and to Kazaa, a file-trading software company.

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