Napster software remains banned until legal trouble over

By Huong Truong

For students adjusting to life without Napster, there is no end in sight. The ongoing lawsuit against Napster continues. And SMU will continue its on-campus ban until the suit is resolved.

"If Napster becomes a non-legal issue, then we will turn it back on," said George Chrisman, vice president of business and finance.

Chrisman cautioned students about illegally downloading copyrighted material from the Internet, saying that the activity can be monitored and traced on campus.

Elvia Rodriguez, a junior broadcasting journalism major and KPNI DJ, opposes the lawsuit and SMU's ban.

"Napster has become an integral part of the radio station because we review new music and CDs on it," Rodriguez said. "We also get new ideas from other stations, so Napster is the medium by which we share, not steal, music."

Rodriguez believes the lawsuit is absurd. She called Napster "a novel way to spread the word on new music."

She also said that she thought unknown artists had a greater chance of becoming known and that increased exposure for million-dollar bands was hardly a reason to complain.

Earlier this month, the Recording Industry Association of America and the National Music Publishers Association filed a brief against Napster in the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. In mid-August, Federal District Judge Marilyn Patel released findings that the recording industry is suffering considerable harm in the sale of their music, in the Internet distribution market and to the perceived value of copyrights.

Hilary Rosen, president and CEO of the RIAA, claims the purpose of the suit is not to discourage MP3 usage but to protect the legal copyrights of artists. She is confident that the court will rule in their favor.

On the other hand, Napster's lawyer, David Boies, argues that the RIAA is trying to control the distribution of music, thereby creating a technological obstacle. He reports that the recording industry is refusing offers from Napster for a reasonable license, proving that they are not willing to compromise. Interestingly, as a result of the publicity of the lawsuit, Napster reports attracting 250,000 new users a week.

Meanwhile, Bruce and Marty Fries, authors of "The MP3 and Internet Audio Handbook," have taken action against the recording industry by teaching consumers about the benefits of online music.

This "missionary" tour, which will not visit Texas this year, consists of free seminars at colleges, bookstores and computer user groups across the United States.

And Rodriguez agrees with the Fries' concept of teaching about the benefits and disagrees with the way SMU is handling it.

"I disagree with SMU's ban; it contradicts what a college environment should be like," Rodriguez said. "Students should have the opportunity to expand their horizons and gain exposure to new things, such as music."