Students targeted for illegal downloading

See what students think...

By Scott D'Amico, Staff Writer

Just because something’s illegal doesn’t mean people don’t do it.

One law broken on a daily basis is broken even by students at OCCC — illegally downloading music.

“No I don’t do it,” said OCCC student Brandon Crouch. “But that’s only because I don’t have a program to do it. I did it a lot before.”

Crouch, like many other college students, is among those most vulnerable to being caught in a lawsuit if found to be downloading copyrighted material.

The Recording Industry Association of America said in February it sent 400 letters to 13 U.S. universities advising them of potential copyright infringement lawsuits, according to CNN.

In the letter sent by the RIAA, students who would be targeted for illegal downloading would be offered the opportunity to settle their lawsuits out of court.

Although the RIAA said it’s not specifically targeting college students, its website details the harsh ramifications that could result from downloading copyrighted material along with a warning to college students.

Those ramifications could include a sentence of up to six years in prison, up to a $250,000 fine or a combination of both.

For students, the consequences could include more than fines or jail time.

“Students may also be subject to disciplinary action at their school, by the school’s own faculty, if it is determined that school computer policies have been violated,” the RIAA’s website read.

On March 21 the RIAA began the second wave of its letter campaign to campuses across the country, informing schools of copyright infringement. This time, 405 letters were sent to 23 universities.

OCCC nursing sophomore Rachel Singley said, although she doesn’t currently download music online, she has no hesitation in doing so.

She said the threat of lawsuits and jail time looms, but she isn’t afraid of being caught.
“It would be hard to find me of all people,” she said.

Most people who are caught illegally downloading music are using peer-to-peer programs like Limewire, Imesh or Kazaa.

According to the RIAA’s website they have a team of Internet Specialists that scour the internet looking for offenders.

The RIAA then sends information subpoenas to internet service providers (ISP). These subpoenas force ISP’s to disclose information about site operators who are allowing the illegal downloading of music.

With only 805 letters sent out by the RIAA in the past two months, the ratio of college students who illegally download copyrighted material to those who get caught remains high.

Staff Writer Scott D’Amico can be reached at onlineeditor@occc.edu.