Life After Napster

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses Napster, first started by college student Shawn Fanning in 1999, that facilitated the sharing of recorded songs over the Internet. It shows the way Napster operated until its shut down in September of 2002, due to multiple charges that the website violated copyright infringement. The paper then looks at the void left in the market by Napster and shows how other entrepreneurs are looking for legal ways to enter the market for digitized music files.

From the Paper:

"Anticipating the void left by Napster, various other individuals began working on alternatives that would still allow the swapping of music files without violating the law. Ian Clarke, a programmer in England, designed a program to facilitate untraceable files. His program would allow anything to be traded, including pornography. He said that those who made their money on copyrights should just find another way to make their living (Levy, 2000). He did not explain how anyone could profit from writing songs without copyright protection. In addition, what is untraceable now may well be traceable in the future, and it is unlikely that all nations of the world will do away with copyright law."

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