..FROM:
http://www.cnn.com/2003/LAW/12/19/music.download.reut/index.html
U.S. court nixes Net music subpoenas
Friday, December 19, 2003 Posted: 11:05 AM EST (1605 GMT)
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -- In a surprise setback for the recording
industry, a U.S. appeals court said Friday its methods for tracking
down those who copy its music over the Internet are not authorized by
law.
The Recording Industry Association of America, a trade group, has
sought to force Verizon Communications and other Internet service
providers to reveal the names of customers it suspects may be copying
music without permission.
The recording industry says the widespread copying of music over the
Internet is partially to blame for falling CD sales.
Verizon has argued that existing copyright law does not give the
recording industry such authority and its customers' privacy was
being violated.
A lower court earlier this year upheld the recording industry's
tactics, which have served as the basis for hundreds of lawsuits
filed against individual Internet users.
But in a strongly worded ruling, the appeals court sided with
Verizon, saying a 1998 copyright law does not give copyright holders
the ability to subpoena customer names from Internet providers
without filing a formal lawsuit.
"In sum, we agree with Verizon that (the law) does not by its terms
authorize the subpoenas issued here," Chief Judge Douglas Ginsburg
wrote.
Neither Verizon nor the RIAA was immediately available for comment.
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..from Steve Job's MacWorld keynote speech this morning, some
interesting info (more details on announcements to come):
- sales of iPods last quarter of 2003 (Oct-Dec): 750,000 units
- total iTunes store (still not available in Canada) sales since
April, 2003: 30 million songs
- largest single spender at iTunes store: US$29,000
- newest addition to Apple's music items: iPod mini (not yet
available in Canada) and GarageBand (part of iLife 4)
