Digital freedom under siege at UM

Spring is in the air, and the University of Maine admissions office has been busy sending out joyfully thick envelopes to successful applicants. But this year, a similar volume of letters is flying onto UMaine campuses to enrolled students, and the letters don’t bring good news.

These “pre-litigation” letters are notifying students of their option to settle with the Recording Industry Association of America for alleged copyright violations from peer-to-peer music downloading. Thankfully, several universities, including the University of Maine, are setting the right example by refusing to allocate scarce educational resources to serving as an enforcement arm of the multibillion-dollar record industry.

The RIAA’s campaign against college students – who spend billions on music and movie content each year – raises serious questions about whether lawsuits are the best way to address concerns about piracy. Commercial piracy is against the law and it is wrong. But instead of educating consumers and providing students with the digital content they want, thus reducing demand for pirated content, the RIAA tries to bully its way onto college campuses, and the University of Maine admirably refused to play along. The university has said it will notify students of the letters, but will not serve as an agent of the RIAA by actively serving their legal papers to its students.

The RIAA is asking schools to provide student identities so that pre-litigation letters may be forwarded offering settlement packages of $750 per alleged song violation – a discounted rate, according to the RIAA. The organization offers no proof of anything illegal in these letters, but faced with the threat of an expensive lawsuit if they don’t settle, many students are sending in checks for more than $3,000.

Indeed, the RIAA is even backing new legislation that would divert federal education funds to fight downloading on college campuses. Although addressing illicit downloading is a worthy goal, the big labels should be embarrassed by their attempt to raid the already bare-bones federal education budget for their private purposes.

Clearly, RIAA has stepped over the line. Lawsuit threats may have limited short-term impact on illegal file-sharing, but what the RIAA fails to see through the trees is that embracing digital technology, rather than punishing its own customers, is the way to digital prosperity. Some companies understand this business reality and already are reaping the rewards.

Apple’s iTunes music download service has enjoyed more than a billion $.99 downloads and just inked a deal with music giant EMI Music to offer consumers higher resolution downloads for $1.29. The new downloads offer near-CD quality music files for a reasonable price – and more importantly, they are digital rights management free. This means consumers will be able to move their lawfully acquired music files amongst their digital devices – a fundamental fair use right and consumer desire.

Rather than intimidating its best customers, the RIAA should be promoting legal download options such as the new Apple-EMI product and join others in educating students about their fair use rights. This is the concept at the heart of the Digital Freedom University recently launched by the Digital Freedom Campaign – a national effort to defend the rights of artists and consumers to use new digital technologies. DFU gives a voice to college students in the debate surrounding digital content access and usage rights. Student chapters are cropping up across the country that will encourage students to acquire content legally and defend their fair use of that content.

Until the RIAA comes around, it appears the big music labels will continue to use these unfortunate tactics to pursue students, and any lesson about the legal marketplace will be clouded by consumer resentment, anger and fear. The recording industry should instead follow EMI’s lead and provide content in a consumer-friendly format for a fair price.

Until that happens, we should all hope that the next college on RIAA’s hit list will follow the fine example set by the University of Maine.

Jason Loeb is the drummer for Pushing Zero, the 2007 winner of the University of Maine Battle of the Bands.