For the first time since the Recording Industry Association of America began filing lawsuits against online illegal file sharers in Sept. 2003, users on the Dartmouth network have been targeted for potential lawsuits. A total of six notices were sent to Kiewit Computing Services in January, informing the College that subpoenas will be issued for the identification of the offending users.
The RIAA subpoenas would force the College to hand over the name, address, e-mail address and telephone number of each of the six identified file sharers on the Dartmouth campus, College General Counsel Robert Donin said.
The notices also indicated that the subpoenas would seek information about the particular sound recording in the user's possession and the internet protocol address of the computer from which the file was shared and the date and time of the detection.
"These notices indicate that RIAA intends to continue to be aggressive in their enforcement campaign," Donin said. "It's important for the students, faculty, and staff to understand the legal consequences."
For students who receive such notices, Donin has three key pieces of advice. The student should first consult with Computing Services, to make sure the full import of such a notice is properly understood. Students should also save any computer records in their possession relating to the alleged claim of illegal online activity. Lastly, Donin recommends that students seek legal counsel from a personal lawyer for further advice on the situation.
Having filed over 6,000 lawsuits, the RIAA could fine violators up to $150,000 each. Average settlements, however, have been considerably less, ranging between $3,000 to $15,000.
Illegal file sharers potentially face criminal charges as well, which could result in maximum three-year prison sentences and fines as high as $250,000, although there have not yet been any such charges made.
The RIAA has recently been stepping up efforts to target illegal file sharers, especially on college campuses, filing over 700 lawsuits last month. In the latest round of lawsuits, the number of college students targeted has increased almost threefold, according to a Jan. 24 press release.
Of the 717 lawsuits filed in January, 68 were issued to college and university network users. The universities number 23 in total and include Georgetown University, Harvard University Medical School, Texas A&M University and University of Michigan at Ann Arbor.
Although these recent notices were the first sent by the RIAA threatening legal action, Computing Services regularly receives "cease-and-desist" notices from various industries, requesting that users on the Dartmouth network discontinue illegal file sharing.
In those cases, Computing Services contacted individuals whose computers were tracked promptly.
There have, however, been some difficulties in identifying a particular illegal file sharer based on IP address alone, according to Ellen Young, manager of Academic Consulting Services within Computing Services.
"Our ability to respond really depends on the immediacy of the complaint," Young said. "Sometimes we'll get a notice 10 days after [the file sharing is detected], and by then, the logs telling us who is doing what, when, are gone."
Young noted that it is particularly difficult to identify people on the wireless network as users constantly log on and off, but efforts are being made on both sides to improve the ability to track users. Organizations are attempting to send out notices sooner following detection, and Computing Services has been putting systems in place to increase wireless network users' awareness.
There has been an on-going effort at Computing Services to prevent illegal file sharing on the Dartmouth campus over the past several years -- the predominant effort is to limit bandwidth for illegal file sharing, Young said.
"We can determine signatures of file sharing software, and limit the bandwidth allowed," Young said. "For example, Kazaa has a unique signature, so Kazaa is only allowed a minute use of the bandwidth."
Although many uses for file sharing programs are illegal, Young emphasized that Computing Services did not want to completely eliminate bandwidth for file sharing, as some file sharing can be legal.
Computing Services also practices "rate-limiting" on the Dartmouth network, capping individual use of the network to maintain enough bandwidth for other users. During hours of high network use, rate-limiting allows file sharing activities to drop down in priority, deterring many users from using programs for illegal purposes.
Donin encouraged Dartmouth students to consider legal online media download services, such as Apple iTunes or Real Rhapsody, as an alternative to illegal file sharing servers.
