Limewire sued for online piracy Options

[Nugget]

http://www.latimes.com/technology/la-fi-re...inav-technology

A coalition of major recording companies Friday sued the operators of LimeWire for alleged copyright infringement, claiming that the firm encourages users of the popular online file-sharing software to trade music without permission, an industry organization said.

New York-based Lime Group, its subsidiaries that designed and distributed LimeWire and the corporation's top executives, are named in the federal court lawsuit, which was filed in the Southern District of New York, the Recording Industry Assn. of America said.

Record labels owned by Sony BMG Music Entertainment, Vivendi's Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group and Britain's EMI Music are behind the complaint, which seeks compensatory and punitive damages, including at least $150,000 for each instance in which a copyrighted song was distributed without permission.

The case is the first piracy lawsuit brought against a distributor of file-sharing software since the U.S. Supreme Court ruled last year that technology companies could be sued for copyright infringement on the grounds that they encouraged customers to steal music and movies over the Internet.

In the complaint, the record companies contend that LimeWire's operators are "actively facilitating, encouraging and enticing" computer users to steal music by failing to block access to copyrighted works and building a business model that allows them to profit directly from piracy.

Like similar programs, LimeWire allows computer users to make files on their PCs available to a multitude of other computer users connected to one another, a method known as peer-to-peer file sharing.

In the LimeWire complaint, the record companies contend that LimeWire, which began operating in 2000, has since grown into the leading file-sharing software for stealing music as other Napster clones have shut down or gone legit in recent years.

A LimeWire spokeswoman, Katie Catillaz, declined to comment on the lawsuit Friday.

Last fall, LimeWire was among several file-sharing services to receive letters from the recording industry association warning them to shut down or face litigation.

I'm kind of scared to download. D:

[EddieV]

I use Bearshare.

[mylittleMiracle]

^Is it...safer?

[EddieV]

^ Well not as many people know about it, however it does come with one adware, but the adware only comes on once you turn on Bearshare, and no ad comes again until the next time you turn it on.

[starlette]

Ares all the way for me :)


theyre on a which hunt. I get where theyre coming from because I'm a musician myself, but the musicians dont even get the money back from those songs. That money goes straight into the pocket of some uncreative stuffed-shirt executive. Damn them.

[EddieV]

^ Well he's un-creative, although he is smart if you think about it.

[*Zatanna*]

UGH! If people just used moderation, these things would happen. It's the download this, download that-happy scroungers that ruin it!

DANNNNNNNGIIIIITTTTTTTT.

The same thing happened to my favorite torrent site last year. It's so frustrating. Most of the people I know download tv shows (which are already paid for since we're all cable subscribers) and they're not in typical DVD encoding, which means that we still purchase the series when the DVDs come out, thus supporting the industry.

People - don't be moochers. Seriously. There is good downloading and bad downloading. I wouldn't dare give you a clarification on the two because honestly I'm not qualified and I'm extremely biased on the subject. All I can say is that be responsible and be respectful. It is fairly cheap to buy downloads, specifically music downloads and it really is only fair that you so.

[starlette]

^ Well he's un-creative, although he is smart if you think about it.

smart yes but irritating as all hell. I mean, Metallica goes on a rampage because people arent buying their albums, and I'm like dude, the money is gone now. You willnever see it again. And now everyone hates you because youre greedy. And yes the record execs are brilliant. They make money effortlessly while artists like me work our asses off to eat.

[jue]

I might stop using limewire. I'm also scared to download now after that article.

[EddieV]

smart yes but irritating as all hell. I mean, Metallica goes on a rampage because people arent buying their albums, and I'm like dude, the money is gone now. You willnever see it again. And now everyone hates you because youre greedy. And yes the record execs are brilliant. They make money effortlessly while artists like me work our asses off to eat.

Then again, many artists are losing out on money which they already have, and true fans would still buy their albums.

[EddieV]

Bearshare has a lot more media than Limewire, a lot of things I can never find on Limewire, I always find on Bearshare.

[pedophile]

Noooo, &I actually use Limewire, too!
Ughhhhhh, I guess I should start legally downloading then.

[*This Confession*]

haha
I've always used Bearshare...

Not so many people, but I have the full version so there isn't the spyware included like the free version

the whole lime wire thing, I feel as if it was bound to happen sometime.

[aubbob]

ahhh i gotta stop with limewire then..
i wonder if that acquisition thing is good..

[*T0rmented_Soul*]

does it describe for people who use Limewire Pro??? some people actually had to pay using that program.....will we get refunds??

[*yrrnotelekktric*]

greatttt. my whole family uses
limewire.

[ghjgfkgfk]

Bearshare has a lot more media than Limewire, a lot of things I can never find on Limewire, I always find on Bearshare.

yeah i like bearshare too. i download movies. it comes with the zango spyware though, but i downloaded a older verison

[KissMe2408]

I might start using Bearshare....


Bah, I use limewire! This sucks...

[smoke]

Pft, please, it won't happen. They tried to sue Kazaa but it didn't work.

[maguti]

Uh oh. time to buy CDs.

[phoenixpyre]

With all the people who still will download from Limewire, do you think ANY kind of government ANYTHING will really track down all the people?

No


So keep using Limewire and quit being babies about it jeez

[medic]

All P2P programs are the same. They all use the same network, they all use some code from each other, and most of them share files. Limewire is under attack because its popular, Bear Share was and still is under attack by the RIAA. As long a Gnutella is alive, and as long as people have the need to take what they want, when they want it. P2P and any file sharing at that much will still go on.

[monxcheri]

Uh oh. time to buy CDs.

yeah.. or time to legally download

[magicfann]

bitch plz, if LimeWire goes down i still have BitTorrent right?

[*My Cinderella.*]

I need to find a better music player.

[shortiiex]

this is just great..i am not wasting my money on music...
cause then there was no point of me to buy a creative zen

[*mipadi*]

this is just great..i am not wasting my money on music...
cause then there was no point of me to buy a creative zen

Strange but true: You can actually put legally-purchased music on a Creative Zen.

[*Statues/Shadows*]

Althought I wouldn't recommend buying one anyway. I don't like them much.

(Right, this is why I gave up p2p programs. I have better methods of acquiring music now.)

[vn_cuti3]

why did that happen to limewire i guess i'll just use bearshare too

[uLoVeMikeRoch]

What the others said. First off, DON'T BE SCARED THAT THE COMPANY IS BEING SUED. You're not going to get caught. Unless you are distributing the files yourselves by ripping and cracking, nothing will happen. Or unless you are a MAD downlaader.

2nd, Bearshare is not safer, nor is it any worse. You will find the exact same files on bearshare as you do on Limewire. Because they are bothing on the Gnutella network.

Lastly, the companies sueing aren't going to win. Limeiwre, is open source. EXCEPT, for the pro version. Most likely, they are gonna end up having to pay fines. They also warn people not to download anything illegally on their sites. It's not their fault that people are pirating and downloading crap illegally. They put up their legal disclaimer.

[*liquid.*]

yeah furrealy what the homie said!^


Itunes ftw? Then you go buy an ipod and masturbate to i@ YAY!!!

[*Zatanna*]

---> News

[bobby james]

Uh oh...you know I really don't download as much as I used to, I know artist ARE losing money, so any one who I like very much, I will buy there CD and suppost them.

[verbalistic]

Why are yall scared? What does piracy mean? I don't get it...

[Just2Fresh]

Ive been a pirate ever since i got internet and i wont stop. Its just my way of getting music, movies and tv shows i want to listen to and watch when i feel like it. But if limewire gets shut down im going to have to look for a new program >.> damnit. And if you value your computer i suggest not using bearshare.

[*My Cinderella.*]

Good. Now I switched to itunes.

[S-Majere]

Pah. Greedy companies.

[Note]

I stopped using limewire after like the 6th grade. It scared me enough with the spyware and it lagged my computer, which I had for 6 years.

I can hardly ever find anything on bearshare because I mainly listen to foreign music. But when I do, I only go like 10 - 15KBS.

So now, it's all about torrents. Full, clear albums with high res album covers in seconds. Makes it easier to import organized songs onto my Ipod and I go like 150 - 300KBS

[MissHygienic]

People use p2p software, still? That's old school, there are far better ways.

[Laughsalot]

would they trace ppl who used limewire in different countries? cuz i think i 'm like the only person who uses it here.

[*yrrnotelekktric*]

fuck.