As the Recording Industry Association of America filed yet another round of lawsuits against individual online file swappers, a group of well-known musicians—including, reportedly, representatives of rock legend Steve Winwood and rap legend Chuck D—have filed briefs with the U.S. Supreme Court urging the justices not to hold Grokster, Morpheus, and other peer-to-peer networks responsible for what their users do with copyright material.
"Musicians are not universally united in opposition to peer-to-peer file sharing," according to a draft of the court filing obtained by several news organizations. "To the contrary, many musicians find peer-to-peer technology . . . allows them easily to reach a worldwide online audience. And to many musicians, the benefits of this . . . strongly outweigh the risks of copyright infringement."
This filing made no bones about condemning copyright infringement and stealing copyrighted materials, but it also argued that P2P networks offer legal and critical alternatives for artists to reach their prospective audiences.
The Supremes are scheduled to begin hearing arguments in MGM v. Grokster, StreamCast March 29. This case is brought specifically by the movie industry, but Hollywood and the RIAA both claim P2P networks offer nothing but a chance for millions to obtain music and movies without properly compensating those who made the music and movies—and because the networks, in their view, do little or nothing to stop copyright infringement.
The Winwood-Chuck D group of musicians, which is also said to include 1970s hitmakers Heart, argue that P2P has offered a viable alternative for younger musicians finding it hard to break the alleged logjam of “a few large national record companies and…several ‘independent’ labels,” according to the draft filing. The draft also said P2P allows long-established artists—citing folk-rocker Janis Ian in particular—a chance to distribute their work even if it isn’t considered commercially viable any longer.
Grokster attorneys argued in a Supreme Court filing that services ilke theirs are used for distributing works legally as well, and extensively enough, with either the artists’ permission or because copyrights expired. That, the Grokster filing continued, meets a standard set by the Supremes in the Betamax case which ruled the videocassette recorder wasn’t liable for infringement because it had broad legal use as well.
In addition, a group of telecommunications companies and Internet service providers including SBC and Verizon argued in a brief that the attack against P2P all but equaled imposing too many risks against innovation that enhances digital entertainment.
"This case,” said that filing, “is simply the latest in a long string of instances in which copyright owners, frightened by a new technological development," try restricting electronics, the Internet, and even personal computers and other entertainment devices.
These filings to the Supreme Court in the Grokster/StreamCast (the parent of Morpheus) case came as the RIAA sued another 753 individuals—including some Grokster users, according to published reports—charging copyright infringement. "The lawsuits are a critical deterrent," RIAA president Cary Sherman said in a statement, helping “arrest the extraordinary growth of illicit (file swapping).”
