James Delahunty
25 Apr 2006 2:58
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has made yet another mistake in its war against file sharers. This time, the group has sued the Walls family from Rockmart, GA. They are accused of sharing music by Whitney Houston, TLC and Bob Seger. Considering the popularity of the music, that sounds like it could be a valid charge by the RIAA - if the family actually had any Internet access... or a computer for that matter.
"I don't understand this," James Walls told his local paper, the Rockmart Journal. "How can they sue us when we don't even have a computer?" The confused family believes that the copyright infringement must have been the work of their home's previous occupant, as they have lived there for less than a year. It's not hard to believe however, as the RIAA has in the past filed a lawsuit against a dead woman.
In the past, several other people sued by the RIAA have claimed they don't own a computer also. "Music and other copyrighted materials are some of America's most important, cherished and visible exports," said the RIAA in a statement this month. "However, pirated sales of our members' recordings topped $4.6bn in 2004." Perhaps going after the correct targets will help fight piracy. It would be a step, at least.
Source:
VNUnet