James Delahunty
14 Sep 2006 7:38
MetaMachine Inc, the company that owns the eDonkey2000 software is to pay $30 million to settle a copyright infringement case brought against it by 6 record companies. The eDonkey2000 network accounted for almost a third of all Internet traffic last year. The advertising revenue and software sales were over $2 million a year. Recently Kazaa owner Sharman Networks also agreed to pay $100 million and provide a "legit" service.
The eDonkey2000 website has been taken down and a message has been left that says...
The IP address logging is only a scare tactic, it is not at all illegal to attempt to visit the eDonkey website. MetaMachine has also agreed not to distribute its software anymore.
"With this new settlement, another domino falls, and we have further strengthened the footing of the legal marketplace," Mitch Bainwol, chairman and chief executive of the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
Of course, you can still use the open source eMule software to download and share files.
Source:
Arstechnica