German investigators charged 3,500 people with illegal music sharing, in the biggest single sweep of its kind, the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) said Tuesday.
The file sharers face criminal and civil prosecution and may be asked to pay damage claims of several thousand euros each. On average, file sharers are being charged €2,500 ($3,193), said the IFPI.
German authorities helped identify the file sharers, who were using the eDonkey network to share thousands of music files. EDonkey software allows users to find and share files with other eDonkey users.
German police searched 130 premises for evidence in the investigations.
The IFPI blames file sharers for a drop in music sales. In Germany, sales of music CDs fell by a third over the last five years, the IFPI said. However, recent research revealed that legal sales of digital music worldwide tripled in 2005.
The German lawsuits follow the IFPI's announcement last month that within about five months it had sued 2,000 illegal file sharers, mainly in Europe.
In addition to music associations like the IFPI, movie organizations are also stepping up their campaigns against illegal file sharing. In February, Belgian authorities arrested the operator of a server hosting and sharing millions of files, including movies, software and music.
Despite the increase in suits against illegal file sharers, the bulk of Internet use continues to be by P-to-P (peer-to-peer) file sharing platforms. Late last year, CacheLogic said that such platforms account for 60 percent of all Internet traffic and that eDonkey is the most popular P-to-P file sharing software.
This whitepaper explains the terminology and concepts behind Data Replication technologies and establishes some sizing rules through worked examples. Learn the new paradigm in disaster tolerance—protect data anywhere.
Download now »
Server virtualization is a popular option for dealing with mounting datacenter costs. Another equally promising approach is the use of an Application Delivery Controller. Citrix NetScaler provides a low-cost way for organizations to reduce their server count and accrue cost savings from a reduction in space, cooling, power and personnel.
Download now »
The emergence of WLANs has created a new breed of security threats to enterprise networks.
Included in HP ProCurve WLAN solutions is security technology that alleviates threats from WLANs through:
* Monitoring wireless activity inside and out of the enterprise
* Classifying WLAN transmissions into harmful and harmless
* Preventing transmissions that pose a security threat to the enterprise network
* Locating participating devices for physical remediation
Effectively address data protection challenges, implementing solutions that help store and protect business–critical data while cutting costs and improving efficiency and reliability.
Download now »
Sign up to receive InfoWorld Resource Alerts
Recommend This
