The corporation responsible for suing music piraters has identified several networked computers on campus that may have been used to download copyrighted songs, and is asking PSU to hand over names of the computers’ users, according to PSU’s legal counsel. The general counsel for PSU, Chip Lazenby, said he is not ready to hand over the names because that may violate federal law regarding student privacy.
RIAA targets PSU downloaders
The corporation responsible for suing music piraters has identified several networked computers on campus that may have been used to download copyrighted songs, and is asking PSU to hand over names of the computers’ users, according to PSU’s legal counsel.
The general counsel for PSU, Chip Lazenby, said he is not ready to hand over the names because that may violate federal law regarding student privacy.
Whether PSU decides to give up the names or not may depend on what happens with the University of Oregon’s recent decision to deny a subpoena from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) to hand over 17 of their network users, he said.
Just because PSU is considering not releasing student names doesn’t mean it condones illegally downloading copyrighted music, according to an e-mail from Lazenby.
“This is a privacy matter, not a pro-piracy or anti-copyright issue,” the e-mail stated.
Similar situation at UO
Portland State’s recent interaction with the RIAA is similar to a separate matter currently under litigation in a court case between the University of Oregon and the RIAA. When threatened with a subpoena in November, UO decided to not give up the names behind 17 IP addresses. An IP address works like a fingerprint and identifies a computer at a certain point in time.
Represented by Oregon Attorney General Hardy Myers, UO filed a motion to quash the subpoena, which would annul it in court. If the court does not quash the subpoena, UO will have to turn over the names of the identified network users, who are presumed to be students. Lazenby said that PSU’s next move in handling the current subpoena would depend on the outcome of the UO case, which he said is unknown at this point.
“There are legal issues here about privacy,” Lazenby said.
College students at risk from the RIAA’s litigation program are those who illegally download copyrighted material on university-networked computers, using applications such as Limewire, Kazaa and BitTorrent, which let users download music from one another.
Lissa Kaufman, of PSU’s Student Legal and Mediation Services, said there are supposedly blockers that can be used to stop the application searchers that the RIAA uses to catch illegal downloading. Universities that have decided to use them haven’t had as many lawsuits and in some cases have had none at all, she said.
When asked to speak in depth about illegal downloading and the processes PSU uses to hinder it, the PSU Telecommunications Department, the IT department and Lazenby declined to comment.
Portland State’s history with the RIAA
In 2004, PSU responded to an RIAA subpoena by giving up the names of two students who were associated with a computer used for alleged illegal downloading. The computer belonged to only one of the students, who were roommates, but both names were given to the RIAA.
Things could be different for PSU this time around, Lazenby said, and depending on their case’s court decision, PSU will likely fall in line with UO.
When asked if the 2004 incident will influence PSU’s action with its current subpoena, Lazenby declined to comment.
Lazenby also declined to comment on how many names are involved with the current subpoena request. He did mention that collection agencies representing copyright firms routinely inquire about IP addresses they have found illegally downloading copyrighted material.
How the RIAA tracks illegal downloads
Last week at a conference in Lake Tahoe, RIAA attorneys spoke to representatives from major western universities on several issues dealing with the copyright infringement lawsuits. Ken Doroshow, RIAA senior vice president of litigation and legal affairs and Matt Oppenheim, an RIAA legal consultant, were guest speakers.
One of the many issues discussed by the attorneys was how the RIAA retrieves the information to build the lawsuits.
Handouts from the conference detail the process:
– The RIAA uses an information security company called MediaSentry to probe downloading applications installed on computers that retrieve information detailing the name of the downloaded song, the artist and the size. MediaSentry then verifies the information with a person who listens to the song to tell if it is a copyright infringement.
– Once a copyright infringement is detected, the RIAA takes the IP address and builds a lawsuit. If the copyright violation took place on a college campus, the RIAA sends a notification to the targeted university, declaring an infringement of copyrighted material at a specific IP address and issuing a subpoena to the name of the user associated with it. Only the university has the ability to get the name behind an IP address.
– The RIAA then offers early settlement letters to be passed along by the university to the student. These settlements usually let students pay $3,000 within ten days of receiving the letter to get rid of the lawsuit.
