RIAA Strike Again

So it goes down once again, for the second time this month the RIAA has won an absurd amount of money against a common man over the use of a handful of songs. The jury judged in favor of the RIAA over PH. D student Joel Tenenbaum. Mr. Tenenbaum was accused of swapping at least 30 songs on the online peer-to-peer site Kazaa. It only took the jury a few hours to determine Mr. Tenenbaum owed the RIAA a sum total of $675,000. That comes out to $22,500 per song he shared on Kazaa. Wow.

Yes he was breaking the law. But in what world is a .99 cent song worth $22,500. That is ridiculous; we need to get a grip on our torts in this country. I understand trying to send a message but give me a break this is a joke. The legal system has become a complete travesty.

Now if it was determined by the legal system that personal file sharing online was not protected by “Fair Use” copyright provisions, and they could definitively prove the defendant is the perpetrator. Then I would be all for a punishment that fits the crime. Somewhere in say 20 times the value of the song and in this case that would make the total judgment a much more reasonable $600.

The truth is all lawsuits and torts are out of control presently. This is just another example, we need to stop all ridiculous suits before they start. You should not have the right to sue without real damage,

What are your thoughts on the RIAA lawsuits? Are they justified? Are they excessive? Leave a comment; let us know what you think.

Tags: Joel Tenenbaum, Kazaa, Lawsuits, RIAA