The Recording Industry Association of America issued a new round of copyright infringement lawsuits for illegal file sharing last week, which includes seven UCLA students out of a total of 91 students nationwide.
This second wave of lawsuits, issued May 26, was targeted against users of Internet2 – a specialized high-speed network used by university students – and marks the first time UCLA students have been the recipients of such legal action.
Students from 33 schools, including UC Berkeley, Davis and San Diego, have been sued this time around, according to the RIAA.
“As long as students continue to corrupt this specialized academic network for the flagrant theft of music, we will continue to make it clear that there are consequences for these unlawful actions,” said Cary Sherman, president of the RIAA in a press release.
The RIAA also filed lawsuits last week against an additional 649 “John Doe” individuals who have distributed copyrighted music illegally using peer-to-peer services like Kazaa, LimeWire and Grokster.
To date, over 11,000 lawsuits for illegal file sharing have been filed by the RIAA since the recording industry’s legal campaign began in September 2003.
UCLA issued a response last Thursday to the RIAA’s legal actions acknowledging the notice of the lawsuits and asking students not to engage in illegal file sharing.
“UCLA considers illegal file sharing an important concern and strives continuously to resolve this very complex issue,” according to a May 26 UCLA press release.
The school also wants to “work on the challenging and ever-evolving issue of illegal file sharing,” the press release reported.
In April, the RIAA launched its first lawsuits against Internet2 users and university students from 18 different campuses, but no UCLA students were targeted then.
UCLA does not actively monitor the Internet activity of its students, said Associate Vice Chancellor for Information Technology Jim Davis.
The school only takes action if there are claims of illegal file sharing.
“We are obligated by law to respond to these subpoenas,” Davis said, meaning the university must turn over any documentation that can show UCLA students have engaged in illegal file sharing. Otherwise, UCLA itself could become the object of a lawsuit.
But, “it’s not our preference that we get subpoenas,” Davis said.
According to the No Electronic Theft Act, which is concerned with copyright violations that involve digital recordings, criminal penalties can be as high as five years in prison for sharing copyrighted music, in addition to $250,000 in fines if a person is sharing more than $2,500 worth of music, regardless if the file sharing was done for profit or not. Furthermore, individuals may face civil charges and statutory damages which may run up to $150,000 per work infringed.
Also, the minimal penalty per song is $750 and civil penalties can run individuals into thousands of dollars in damages and legal fees.
Davis said UCLA plays an important role in “keeping the campus aware of this issue” and helps students “understand the ramifications of this.”
To decrease illegal file sharing, UCLA instituted a “quarantine” system in April 2004.
First-time offenders have their computers’ Internet access blocked, though students still have continued access to UCLA services, such as MyUCLA.
Violators are also sent an e-mail requesting them to remove all illegally obtained copyrighted material. The e-mail also explains the ramifications of a repeat offense.
Students must acknowledge electronically that they have engaged in illegal file sharing.
Repeat offenders will have their Internet access blocked, in addition to their names being sent to the dean of students.
The quarantine process has led to “a significant decrease in the number of repeat offenses,” the May 26 press release said.
Davis believes the RIAA and the Motion Picture Association of America will continue to take legal action in the future.
“Both are very serious about the i2hub technology,” he said, referring to the application used to access the Internet2 network.