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The music industry began a promised wave of lawsuits on Monday, suing 261 people it accuses of illegally distributing about 1,000 copyright music files each, using peer-to-peer networks.
The suits were filed in jurisdictions around the country. The Recording Industry Association of America said it did not know anything about the people it has targeted other than the number of copyright songs they distributed and their names and addresses.
On average, the music traders had made over 1,000 music files available to others on P2P networks like Kazaa. The most egregious offender sued had shared over 3,000 files.
The only criterion for the suits was "the number of files being offered," said Cary Sherman, president of the RIAA, the music trade group that represents the five major music labels: Universal Music Group, Sony Music, BMG, EMI and Warner Music.
The RIAA also formally announced an amnesty program that would give peace of mind to file sharers who voluntarily come forward and admit their wrongdoing.
The music industry blames "piracy" on P2P networks for its three-year decline in CD sales.
Sherman said the RIAA is suing uploaders -- those who make music files available for others -- in hopes of cutting off the number of files available on peer-to-peer networks.
Under federal copyright law, penalties for copyright violations range from $750 to $150,000 per work infringed. The court will decide the amount of damages.
"We're not going to ask for any specific amount," Sherman said.
Sherman said that a "handful" of people who were alerted that their information was subpoenaed by the RIAA had approached the music group and are in the process of settling their cases.
The settlements in those cases will amount to about $3,000 each, which is probably a more lenient agreement than settlements to come, Sherman said.
Sherman emphasized that the trade group is open to settling with those who have been sued. Amounts will be determined on a case-by-case basis.
The RIAA said it had given repeated warnings to file sharers. The group has been working with colleges and universities to combat the problem, and the group contacted sharers directly in an instant-message campaign to alert them that sharing copyright files is illegal.
In addition, four college students were sued by the music trade group in the spring for running "Napster-like" networks on campus. Those cases settled for between $12,000 and $17,500.
Sherman said there may be some college students among the defendants in this round of lawsuits, but he could not say for sure. Boston University, Bentley College and Northeastern University were among a number of universities that received subpoenas this summer.
The money collected from the copyright-infringement cases will fund the ongoing education and enforcement campaign, Sherman said.
Sherman confirmed that subpoenas seeking the identities of more than 1,500 people had been issued since June, when the organization first announced its intention to collect the names and addresses of suspected music "pirates." He said more lawsuits are on the way, but they will not be announced publicly in the same manner as this first wave of litigation.
Artists are supportive of the need to address the file-sharing problem, Sherman said, though he did not name any musician in particular.
Hugh Presswood, a country music songwriter, said that many artists are reluctant to speak out in public against file sharing for fear of alienating their fans.
Music lovers who want assurance that they will not be the target of a lawsuit are invited to sign up for the RIAA's amnesty program. To qualify, the repentant file sharer must sign an agreement promising to delete any illegally obtained music files and swear never to do it again. Those who choose to do this are assured that they will not be sued by the RIAA.
Sherman said the program would be an honor system, and those who come forward will not be regularly monitored and their personal information will be kept private.
People are not required to remove P2P software from their computer to be eligible for the amnesty program, but Sherman said it is the best way to ensure that files are not inadvertently shared again. Those whose information has already been subpoenaed are not eligible for the amnesty program.
Anyone found in violation of the amnesty agreement would be liable for a higher amount of damages, Sherman said.