The RIAA Goes to College

The Recording Industry Association of America, the RIAA, is still trying to combat the extensive piracy that takes place on college campuses and universities in the U.S. The Student Monitor from 2006 reported that over half of college students downloaded music illegally. Also, the market research firm NPD, found that college students account for more than 1.3 billion of the illegal music downloads in 2006. The students only represented 10% of the sample, yet they accounted for 26% of all music downloading on peer to peer sites and 21% of all peer to peer network users. NPD surveyed students to find that more than 2/3 of all music they report acquiring is obtained illegally. Therefore, acting on behalf of the major record companies, the RIAA sent a batch of 405 pre-litigation settlement letters to 23 universities. This is the second time the association has done this.

The letters take the approach that the RIAA recently adopted in its other threatening letters to potential litigants. As a service, students will have the opportunity to settle the infringement claims brought against them at a discounted and without going to court. In this round of letters, the RIAA informed the following 23 schools of a forthcoming copyright infringement suit against one of its students or personnel: Boston University, Columbia University, Dartmouth College, DePaul University, Drexel University, Ferris State University, Ithaca College, Purdue University, University of California - Berkeley, University of California - Los Angeles, University of California - Santa Cruz, University of Maine system, University of Nebraska - Lincoln, University of Wisconsin system, Vanderbilt University, and Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University.

"Not every student will take advantage of this opportunity, but those that do get the benefit of a discounted settlement and no public mark on their record," explains Steven Marks, Executive Vice President and General Counsel for the RIAA. On behalf of college students everywhere, thank you, RIAA, for your continued mercy and lenience.

It is misguided, of course, but here is what the RIAA is doing right. There may never be an end to piracy in our lifetime, but if there is a way to diminish the harmful effects, surely education is the path. Last month, the RIAA began a new education program focused on illegal file sharing on campus. The initiatives represent a significant expansion of the association's efforts.