Record labels tout program to disable swapping

[Newton]

The music and movie industries are giving people who have swapped songs and other copyrighted material over the Internet a new way to repent for their illicit ways.

A free program released Thursday, called Digital File Check, will uninstall or disable file-sharing programs on people's computers. The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), an affiliate of the Recording Industry Association of America in London, helped develop the software along with the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA).

The groups are mainly aiming the program at parents and employers in Europe.

"Digital File Check is easy to use and can help people prevent their employees, children and others from illegally downloading and swapping movies," Dan Glickman, president of the MPAA, said in a statement.

"It could be especially useful for parents who want to encourage their children to enjoy music responsibly on the Internet," the IFPI said in a statement. "It is free, voluntary and for private use only and does not tip off any antipiracy organizations."
The software, available for download, will also search computers for music and movies and remove any illegal copies, the group said.

The IFPI also announced plans to publish and distribute a guide for employers called "Copyright and Security Guide for Companies and Governments," outlining the liabilities of leaving corporate networks open to copyright infringement.

The new campaign is one of several fronts of a war the recording industry is waging on peer-to-peer networks that facilitate the free sharing of music and movies. Last week, the RIAA sent warning letters to seven peer-to-peer companies, asking them to stop encouraging users to circumvent copyright laws.

The organization won a Supreme Court fight in June with file-sharing service Grokster and has filed thousands of lawsuits against individuals who allegedly used such networks and violated copyright laws.

http://news.com.com/Record+labels+tout+program+to+disable+swapping/2100-1027_3-5876687.html

This only works for windows??

[ReighlynnRaine]

Because not charging ridiculous amounts for movies/cd's so more people could actually buy them instead of downoading them would just be asking to much. :thumbdown

[Trev]

BitTorrent seems to be the way to go with WinMX and eDonkey being shut down.

Well their websites are closed, but there are ways to still connect to the networks, allegedly ;)

[Trev]

Seems I was mistaken, eDonkey are still running, only their offices have closed. They're kicking BitTorrents ass as well:

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20050829-5255.html

Last year, BitTorrent traffic accounted for nearly half of all Internet traffic. After Hollywood retaliated with a barrage of lawsuits and legal threats against Web sites that provided trackers—links signaling BitTorrent how to download files—usage dropped, but a recent study by Internet analysis firm CacheLogic reports that former BitTorrent users have simply switched to eDonkey, another peer-to-peer file-sharing network.

"This is almost assuredly a result of the increased legal action toward the once-ignored BitTorrent - a game of P2P hide-and-seek," said CacheLogic's chief technology officer Andrew Parker.

The CacheLogic report ranked South Korea, which has the highest percentage of high-speed broadband users, as the country with the most eDonkey users, along with Italy, Germany, and Spain. The United States also saw a resurgence in the popularity of the Gnutella file-sharing network, which experienced a similar drop in popularity after music companies cracked down on its usage.

With many once-popular trackers closed down in response to legal threats, BitTorrent users may have switched to alternative file-sharing networks such as eDonkey and Gnutella in an effort to find movies and music files for download. In addition, the MPAA's tactic of prosecuting users via BitTorrent tracker logs may also account for the move to eDonkey, which provides a decentralized service. The lack of a central server means additional anonymity for file sharers, although P2P users have already proved unlikely to be dissuaded by the threat of prosecution. CacheLogic reports that the highly-publicized MGM v. Grokster ruling did not cause the drop in file sharing that Hollywood had hoped for. As Parker noted, Gnutella's reported demise and recent return was "proof that legal pressure from industry groups results in the mass migration of file sharers to an alternative network, whether old or new."

[Newton]

To be honest I don't think they will ever stop it happening .. far better to embrace it and launch sites that cater for mp3's and movies that they can all profit from.

[ReighlynnRaine]

Hear hear Newton. :D