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Allofmp3 case thrown out of Russian court

15 August 2007 13:56 by Dave "Davedough" Horvath | 17 comments

The owner of the once famed Allofmp3.com, Denis Kvasov has been acquitted of charges of copyright infringement stemming from his sale of bottom dollar priced MP3 files. The court in Moscow has ruled that Kvasov and his website were both working well within the limits of Russian law. Prior to being forcibly shut down in June of this year, Allofmp3.com had garnered millions of customers. Several music firms pressured Kvasov into shutting down his site and proceeded to progress with the lawsuit. Additionally, the music industry has enough influence on the US Government, that this ordeal with the website had hampered US-Russian talks over Moscow's bid to join the World Trade Organization (WTO).

Kvasov was forced to stand trial after being pressed for prosecution from EMI, Warner Music Group, and Universal, however District Judge Yekaterina Sharapova threw out the case. She stated, "The prosecution did not succeed in presenting persuasive evidence of his involvement in infringing copyright law".

During the trial, Kvasov argued that he had paid royalties from the sales he made on his site to a local organization, the Russian Multimedia and Internet Society. With starting prices of individual tracks being at $.10 and entire albums brimming to $1, its hard to say just how much of this was paid out to the firm. Western organizations like the ones who issued the lawsuit fail to recognize the Russian Multimedia and Internet Society as a sanctioned entity, therefore do not agree to accept payments from them for licensed material.

A part of the negotiations between the United States and Russia stated that Russian websites that operated in a simliar manner as Allofmp3.com would not be tolerated and had to be shut down. Allofmp3.com itself was used as an example to further progress these WTO talks. Even though Allofmp3.com was made a scapegoat, several other low dollar Russian-based music sites opened up shortly after Allofmp3.com was taken down.

Source:
BBC

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bomber991 (Junior Member) 15 August 2007 15:23
I'm kind of dumb when it comes to legal talk. So this means that Allofmp3 was in fact not breaking any laws in Russia? Which means that they weren't breaking any laws at all? [ + quote]
DjDanio (Newbie) 15 August 2007 15:27
yes [ + quote]
Kerpalguy (Inactive) 15 August 2007 15:45
I find it noble that the Russian judge didn't back down to the political pressure of the WTO threat. I would like to believe that this case is said and done, but I'm sure this won't be the end. Interesting that the politicians, prosecution, plaintiffs and so on remain oblivious to the bazillion other Russian MP3 Sites that are out there in active operation. The case against allofmp3.com is nothing but a political spectacle. [ + quote]
Unfocused (Member) 15 August 2007 16:44
So, can this site resume business and perhaps sue for lost revenue for the time it was down? [ + quote]
handsom (Senior Member) 16 August 2007 12:15
Yes and no. Though Russia will not proceed with charges against him, they also want to be a part of the WTO, it means a LOT more money than sites like AllofMp3.com could EVER provide for their economy. Now, as soon as someone presents us with AllofAVI.com, then they might say screw the WTO, lol. [ + quote]
kewlgem (Inactive) 18 August 2007 6:57
What happened to my credit balance I had with Allofmp3.com? Are they going to reopen the site? The fact is that at my age I am not that interested in buying much music anymore, but because Allofmp3.com had such low prices I ended up paying for and downloading a lot of music. Much of it was to replace my existing vinyl collection. Doesn't the greedy music industry realize that half a loaf is better than none? Does anybody know if the site is up again or under a different name and location? [ + quote]
scorpNZ (Senior Member) 18 August 2007 13:06
Since there's the net i find it strange that the musicians don't just dump the RIAA all togeather and make their own co-op and sell the music direct,they could also make & market the cd's,dvd's etc,well they may as well since they're already covering the costs of making & marketing,there is no outlay for the RIAA as all the costs are worn by the bands after which they get their cut which amounts to stuff all. [ + quote]
tranquash (Member) 18 August 2007 15:41
I'm so happy for allofmp3 Hope they come back in business soon. [ + quote]
trinity69 (Inactive) 19 August 2007 6:54
I'm just glad that I only had two cents worth of credit left on my account. :) [ + quote]
themooner (Newbie) 19 August 2007 7:44
All Of MP3 Is Still In Business. Just Under A Different Name. The New Name Is MP3Sparks. (http://www.mp3sparks.com). Your User Id And Passwords Are Still The Same Along With Your Balance. I Did Not Know I Had A Balance Until I Logged Into MP3SPARKS.com. Check This Site Also For MP3 Files. The Price Is Very Cheap If You Don't Mind The Site Being Very Slow. Have Fun [ + quote]
rickland (Newbie) 19 August 2007 9:45
*Originally posted by themooner:* ....Your User Id And Passwords Are Still The Same Along With Your Balance..... Maybe this is so for you but appearantly it is not so for me. I went to that link you posted, entered my old AllOfMps3 username and password and it was not accepted. I then entered my email address, which I know is the correct one, to retrieve my username/password and it responded saying email address not valid. [ + quote]
kewlgem (Inactive) 19 August 2007 13:41
I went to the new site at http://www.mp3sparks.com and my ID and password did not work either. Now what???? [ + quote]
drmors (Newbie) 19 August 2007 14:46
As a former subscriber to Allofmp3.com I have just logged on to the new site http://www.mp3sparks.com using my former ID and password to find my previous balance intact as I expected. These Russians are okay for business--long may the site survive! [ + quote]
themooner (Newbie) 19 August 2007 16:33
Please Make Sure You Are Using The Username & Password Exactly As On ALLOFMP3.COM. You Can Contact them If You Have The Original Info When You Originally Signed Up. Check This Site Also For MP3 Files. The Price Is Very Cheap If You Don't Mind The Site Being Very Slow. I Forgot To Place The Link Regarding This Line. Here It Is. (http://www.legalsounds.com) Plenty Of MP3 Files. Albums Averaging About $1.00 Each [ + quote]
borhan9 (AfterDawn Addict) 19 August 2007 20:26
I love how russia works and their laws. They just throw out anyone that wants to push their law onto their country. [ + quote]
rickland (Newbie) 19 August 2007 20:58
Well it is possible that my username/password might have been incorrect (I doubt it though) but my email address was definately correct and they said it wasn't on file so they were not able to email me my username/password. Anyway, I don't like their new payment policy. Before 10 bucks was the minimum you needed to add to your account and now it's 25 bucks. I don't think so. They don't have 25 bucks worth of music that I care about. [ + quote]
Unfocused (Member) 22 August 2007 16:18
@scorpNZ A few artists are trying this approach, but their existing contract is what stops most of them from trying to market / distribute the stuff themselves. [ + quote]