Remember FanLib and their connections with RIAA?

[icarus]

Remember FanLib and their connections with Hilary Rosen and RIAA?

I was having trouble understanding who RIAA was and why those connections were problematic, though I followed that under FanLib's associate, Hilary Rosen, RIAA was all about scraping money for the suits at the expense of the artists. With a little more digging (thank you rez_lo) I learned she helped criminalize fair use even where no copyright had been violated.

Most of us know that fanfiction relies upon fair use as our legal cornerstone. Undermining fair use is bad for fanfiction writers. Really bad. I've put Rosen on my dartboard as an enemy of fanfiction.

But now I have a clear picture. RIAA is a bunch of assholes who threaten dirt-poor college students with lawsuits for illegally downloading music. Or! Those lucky kids can settle for between $3,000 - $5,000.

Apparently, RIAA has leaned on universities (I imagine by telling them if you don't help us, we'll sue you instead) to send letters on their behalf. At least one university stopped short of giving RIAA students' addresses outright at any rate, though their lawyers are running scared.

Dear Student:

I am writing to inform you of a development that could become a
serious issue for some of our students--the law governing downloading and
sharing of music and video from the internet. Under copyright law, it is
illegal to download or share copyrighted materials such as music or movies
without the permission of the copyright owner. The Recording Industry
Association of America (RIAA) in recent years has taken an aggressive
approach to stopping this illegal downloading and file sharing. This has
put many students at the nation's colleges and universities at some legal
risk. I write first to caution you against illegally downloading or
sharing files. Your actions when you do so are traceable and could result
in a significant financial penalty to you. Second, I want to inform you
about a new process the RIAA has initiated and the University's role in
this process.

The RIAA is now sending colleges and universities a letter for
each instance they find of a student illegally downloading material from
the internet and requesting the university to identify the individual
student and forward the letter to him or her. The letter, called an
"Early Settlement Letter" notifies the student that he or she has 20 days
to settle with the RIAA by going to a designated website, entering
identifying information, and paying a set amount, usually between $3,000
and $5,000, but sometimes considerably more. If the recipient chooses not
to settle, the RIAA will file a lawsuit and the offer to settle for the
amount stipulated is no longer an option.

The University has been notified by the RIAA that we will be
receiving a number of these early settlement letters. After careful
consideration, we have decided to forward the letters to the alleged
copyright violators. We do so primarily because we believe students should
have the opportunity to avail themselves of the settlement option if they
so choose. Not forwarding the RIAA letter to students could result in
their being served with a lawsuit, with no chance to settle it beforehand.

The University is unable to provide legal services to students who
have violated copyright law through illegal downloading or sharing. If you
receive a letter from the RIAA, we encourage you to engage a personal
attorney. If you have questions, please let us know.

We know how tempting it is to download music or movies and share
files with your friends. But you need to know that it is illegal to do so
and that the consequences can be severe. Please inform yourself of the
requirements of the law and please obey it. Otherwise, it may prove costly
for you and your family.


Now that I have this pretty snapshot of RIAA -- what on earth is FanLib doing mixed up with these guys?


(I've turned off comments because I have to focus on writing right now.)