The Napster Case (see Fleras: 262)

The Napster Case (see Fleras: 262)

• Musical Recording Industry argued Napster infringed copyright– even Metallica!
• Damages estimated in the millions
• Refused to admit free sampling in fact increased exposure to music: eventual purchase
• Lined up a number of musicians to argue that the financial damage was to artists ( not the the multinationals)

Napster defense

• An information source
• Not ‘housing’ or copying
• Intention to move to a subscription service
• Struggled to settle out of court
• Agreed to charge a monthly fee
• Purchased by Bertelsmann
• Lost Case

Effects of Napster

• Now usurped in the market ( Morpheus , Kazaa and others) but trying a comeback
• Victor? : to large companies:
• BUT– they introduced 2 tier pricing to allow new artists to break in
• They reduced price of CDs
• More services experimenting with subscription and transaction fees
• Major transformation in Music Happening
• Victor? To consumers
• Forcing a major rethink of copyright
• Hierarchy of value: new versus brand artists merit more protection
• Should IP be free? It takes a community to raise an artist.