RIAA thinks we'd be better off without the web

At times, watching the big music industry cartel squawking and squealing over the years since the first indication that Napster might be a problem of some sort, it's seemed that the RIAA might be happier if the internet had never been invented. How they must wish they could just get the bloody thing switched off, and we could all go back to using CDs and local record stores.

They're working hard to achieve that dream, reckons Ray Beckerman. Beckerman is a lawyer representing Barker in Electro vs. Barker, and he suggests that if the RIAA-backed Electro wins, the logical conclusion would be the unplugging of all DNS servers:

This is a nursing student who was sued in her name. We made a motion to dismiss the complaint because doesn't specify any acts or dates or times of copyright infringement as the law normally requires. We've made several arguments like that before this motion and the RIAA put in an argument which basically fudged it. However, in this case they basically decided to go for the gold and they made a bold argument claiming that merely making files available on the internet is in and of itself a copyright infringement. It was a shocking argument because if it were accepted it would probably shut down the entire internet.

Beckerman also has much to say about how the judges hearing a lot of these cases lack the basic technical understanding to follow some of the arguments - and a more disturbing reluctance to allow themselves to be educated.

They could, of course, try and mug up on the details with Google. Unless, of course, the RIAA manage to get the whole thing shut down.

[Thanks to David Scott for the link]

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