Notice of Illegal Music Downloading and File Sharing from the RIAA or MPAA

The Record Industry Association of America (RIAA), a trade association of recording companies holding music copyrights, and The Motion Picture Association of America are aggressively initiating legal actions against individuals engaged in illegal peer-to-peer (P2P) music and video file sharing. This year, over 280 students at the University of Texas at Austin, as well as students at numerous other universities, have been targeted. According to the RIAA, this makes UT the #1 source of copyright violations in the nation at this time, which is why our students are coming under ever increasing scrutiny. Under copyright law, violators can be held liable for a minimum of $750.00 per violation (each file is a single violation), and it will cost the students thousands of dollars to settle the lawsuits out of court. A copyright violation is legally known as "strict liability", which means your knowledge or intent to perform an illegal act is not necessary for you to be liable. Although if the violations exceed $2,500 in penalties and if the RIAA or MPAA could prove that you had actual intent to violate their copyrights criminal sanctions could be pursued, at this time we are unaware that any criminal penalties are being sought. Hence, while the matter is serious, presently it is being pursued as a civil matter only and no jail time is being sought.

The RIAA and the MPAA and other copyright holders use automated methods to identify infringements, and even small amounts of sharing are being tracked to a student's IP address. Some students have noted that the IP address on the notices do not match their current IP addresses. This may be because each time you log off of the UT system, the server will drop the IP address that you had been using and when you log on, you will pick up another one. The point being that it is ineffective to argue that because you had a different IP address you have a good defense.

Once UT receives a notice then they will, in compliance with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), respond quickly when notified of alleged copyright infringements occurring from a computer connected to the campus network. First, you will have received a warning email that that you may be in violation either through alleged illegal downloading or allowing legally purchased songs on your computer to be shared with others illegally through a file-sharing program (like Limewire).

This year, over 280 students at the University of Texas at Austin, as well as students at numerous other universities, have been targeted. According to the RIAA, this makes UT the #1 source of copyright violations in the nation at this time...

In some cases, the RIAA will then send out another pre-lawsuit settlement notice like the one you have received. This notice gives you the chance, if you did in fact download and share the music or video, to settle early without being sued in Federal Court. If you do not settle and the copyright holders issue a subpoena to the University seeking your name and address connected with a particular IP address, the University will release this identification information, which allows the copyright holders to sue you individually. Once they sue, assuming that you did in fact share the files online, the cost of settlement will go up by approximately $1,000. If you actually decide to fight the matter in court and are not successful, then the judgment could cost you tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars, and you will have a large money judgment against you that could follow you for decades, harming your credit and in some instances hurting job prospects.

In addition to the risk of costly civil lawsuit, students who engage in the unauthorized downloading or distribution of copyrighted materials are acting in violation of the University's Acceptable Use policy. Presently, Student Judicial Services is being sent a notice of any violation, but it is our understanding that at this time they are not pursuing any action against one-time offenders; however, if you are a repeat violator, then they may consider some punitive measures and you will have to speak with one of their officers. The University may also terminate computer privileges for repeat offenders, and students can face other disciplinary action. At greatest risk of being sued are those students who live on campus housing who have a computer connected to the campus network.

LimeWire, KaZaA, Blubster, Grokster, BitTorrent, Gnutella, iMesh,CuteMX, Scour, FreeNetfile, or any other music or movie file-sharing software on your computer opens the door to liability. While file-sharing software may itself be lawful, there is usually a copyright on the music, video, or other files being shared. The file sharing is a violation of copyright law unless the copyright owner gives explicit written permission. Also, while there has been some discussion in the media, the RIAA has assured us that if you have legally purchased a song and then ripped it onto your computer or MP3 player, they are not interested in pursuing you for this action. It is only when you do this step and then make it available to others that liability can be incurred.

Pre-suit settlement of the case will, after the agreement is signed and you have paid, require that you remove the program and all music or movies that you have downloaded from your computer, and agree never to do it again, or they have the right to sue you in the future. Simply disabling the "sharing" or "uploading" features is not sufficient. Also, be certain that you do not remove the offending software when you receive a warning or a notice of possible litigation. That is destruction of evidence and if your case does go to trial you will be liable for sanctions from the court (including the possible dismissal of any defenses that you may have). Finally, make sure that your computer is password protected to limit access to your computer, thereby preventing others from downloading music or movies onto your computer.

You can settle the case directly with the RIAA by calling their settlement hotline. Presently, this costs $3,000 regardless of the number of illegal downloads or sharings that you have allegedly performed. You can send in a payment by credit card or cashier's check. This is also the settlement price even if you have been double, triple or even quadrupled captured (e.g.- you have received multiple and different pre-suit settlement letters noting different violation times but the same computer). However, you must be sure and identify each and every one of the case numbers that you have received to ensure that all matters are resolved. If you cannot raise $3,000 in 20 days or less, then you may wish to consider a payment plan. The RIAA is currently offering to allow you to make payments for six (6) months, but you must then pay a fine of $3,350, or you can pay over twelve (12) months but then you have to pay $3,600. Do not agree to the payment plan if you do not think you can keep up with the payments as if you are late with 3 or more payments, or quit paying the balance, the original settlement amount will double. Either way, this will wreck your credit and cause a federal lawsuit to be filed against you for your alleged original actions.

If you believe that you have been wrongfully accused or have additional questions about the documents you have received, then you should visit with either your own lawyer or with LSS attorneys. Our staff will be happy to assist you with this; all you need to do is call our main number at 471-7796, or stop by to make an appointment in person at Room 3.410 of the Student Services Building.

Please do not ignore the warning and pre-suit settlement letters as this will only cause you much more financial damage in the future. Either take action to resolve or fight this matter through our office or with the assistance of another attorney.

If you have any questions, you are always welcome to contact LSS for further assistance.