Family owes $4,080 for music downloads
Oregonians say they didn't know practice was illegal

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
August 8, 2006
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/280423_download08.html

KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. -- Leslie Maxfield has got a case of the downloading blues.

His Klamath Falls family owes more than $4,000 after reaching a settlement with record companies over the illegal downloading of 834 rock and country songs.

With a Saturday deadline approaching, Maxfield has yet to pay the settlement, and he's not sure if he can.

"I've got about a week and they'll be wanting their money, and I don't know what to do," said Maxfield, a 51-year-old cabinet maker. "They're trying to get blood out of a turnip.

"I feel like I'm in a nightmare."

The nightmare started after the family downloaded music files to their computer through Kazaa, a file-sharing service not authorized by record companies that license their music for sale through online services such as iTunes.

Maxfield said his family didn't know that downloading what appeared to be free music on legitimate Web sites was illegal. He disagrees with the "music pirate" label that has been placed on him by the recording industry.

"They act like I went out intentionally to rob them," Maxfield said. "Now, they're using the court system to rob us."

Maxfield agreed to pay a $4,080 settlement as well as $420 court costs and processing fees, a copy of the settlement states. He also agreed to destroy all the files, according to the settlement.

The Maxfields were one of three southern Oregon households hit in April with federal copyright infringement lawsuits by the Recording Industry Association of America.

A defendant identified only as Jeanie Metzer of Jackson County saw her suit dropped in June for reasons not identified in court papers. The third defendant, identified as Eva Thomas of Josephine County, has until the end of August to file court papers in response to her suit.

The suits accuse them of "songlifting," the process of sending or receiving copyrighted music over the Internet through peer-to-peer services not authorized by recording companies. Songlifting violates federal copyright laws, and the U.S. Supreme Court ruled unanimously last year that those who use the unauthorized services can be liable for copyright infringement.

"Songlifting is illegal, and people are not anonymous on peer-to-peer networks, and there are consequences to their illegal actions," RIAA spokeswoman Jenni Engebretsen said Friday after her group sued the Internet file-sharing network LimeWire in federal court in New York.

Since starting its campaign in September 2003, the RIAA has filed more than 18,200 copyright infringement cases across the country on behalf of record company giants such as Capitol Records, Warner Bros. and Sony.

Engebretsen declined to discuss specific cases. But the association has settled more than 4,900 cases, with the remaining "in various stages of litigation."

No case to date has made it to trial.

"We see these as very clear-cut cases," Engebretsen said.

Thomas and Bowser face a maximum penalty of one year in prison and up to a $100,000 fine.