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Will the threat of lawsuits have any effect on the file-sharing phenomenon? The music industry hopes and prays that it will. As of July 19, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) had sought and obtained "at least 871 federal subpoenas against computer users . . . with 75 new subpoenas being approved each day," according to an Associated Press report.

Defendants include individuals known only by their screen names, some university and college network administrators, and Internet service providers such as Verizon Communications, Inc. and Comcast Cable Communications, Inc. Some of the subpoenas mention as few as five songs offered or downloaded; under US law, the RIAA could seek damages ranging from $750 to $150,000 each. Under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, subpoenas can be obtained from any US District Court clerk's office—no judicial signature required. The clerk's office in the US District Court in Washington—a "clearing house" for subpoenas nationwide—is reportedly so busy with RIAA requests that workers had to be recruited from other departments.

The pursuit of small-time file sharers flies in the face of recent industry statements that it would go after only egregious violators. Now it appears that any and all file sharers could be targeted. "It doesn't sound like they're just going after a few big fish," said Alan Davidson of the Center for Democracy and Technology, a civil liberties organization. The fear of legal action and the threat of crushing fines that could take decades to pay could certainly make many casual music fans shy away from sampling tunes on the 'Net.

When the RIAA's lawsuit campaign was announced, some Internet-use-tracking organizations reported a brief dip in the amount of file-sharing activity, followed by what was perceived as a rebound. In mid-July, Nielsen NetRatings reported a decline of one million uses on the KaZaa network and correspondingly large drops among other services. On July 14, 2003 the tracking organization reported 15% fewer users of KaZaa and Morpheus, two of the most popular file-swapping services. KaZaa and Morpheus spokesmen attributed the declines to "seasonal fluctuations."

Obviously, declines in file sharing are the intent of the mass litigation, even though it's almost impossible for any legal action to result in the sale of a single CD. The music industry would love to find a way to force people to buy its products. No one can wave a gun at music fans and force them to open their wallets, but a couple of Congressmen have the next best solution: jail for file sharers. On July 16, Representatives John Conyers (D-MI) and Howard Berman (D-CA) introduced a bill that would subject copyright violators to incarceration.

The Conyers-Berman bill would define the sharing of movies, music, and other intellectual properties over computer networks as felonies—criminal acts punishable by up to five years in jail. Curiously, the bill would also ban videotaping movies in theaters, the source of many illicit DVDs sold on the streets in Asia and other parts of the world, but one not widely practiced in the US. Conyers, the highest-ranking Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, said simply, "While existing laws have been useful in stemming this problem, they simply do not go far enough." Conyers and Berman are both strongly subsidized by the music industry - Conyers by Motown, Berman by Hollywood.

The RIAA praised their proposal. Comedian Steve Martin took this sort of logic to its ultimate conclusion many years ago. "The cure for overcrowding?" he riffed. "Death penalty for parking tickets."