Following last week’s decision that it would stop lawsuits, and instead pressure ISPs, the RIAA appears to be on the verge of cutting ties with MediaSentry, their unethical “investigative arm.”
There is no cause for celebration here however, as the rumor has it that they will be replacing the “watchdog” company with a similar one, such as BayTSP.
Although unconfirmed by MediaSentry or the record industry, the decision to drop MediaSentry should help the trade group retain any integrity it has left. MediaSentry has been at the center of controversy for months now and has even been accused of investigating without a license, performing illegal searches and taps, and even destroying evidence.
Result for: isps
The BBC has announced they have finally created a version of the popular iPlayer that will work on Mac and Linux computers.
Although Mac and Linux users have had the ability to stream content for over a year, downloads were not available. With the new BBC iPlayer Desktop, both operating systems will be able to handle both streaming and downloads.
The latest version “has been written with Adobe’s AIR technology which aims to make it possible to create applications that can be downloaded to your computer, rather than just embedded in browser web pages as is possible with the widely used Flash software.”
The iPlayer has come under fire in Europe from ISPs who claim that users of the service clog bandwidth.
Result for: isps
After suing over 35,000 people since 2002 over music piracy, the RIAA is changing its policy and will discontinue suing individuals over unauthorized music sharing through P2P networks.
With that good news however, comes possibly worse news.
The RIAA is now making agreements with ISPs (Internet Service Providers) that would have the companies send out emails to customers they believe are “making music available online for others to take.”
The first three emails will be warnings asking the customer to stop, but a 4th may warrant having your Internet connection cut off entirely.
Although they will stop sending out mass lawsuits, the RIAA retains the right to sue “heavy users.” All current lawsuits will be settled as well.
