File swappers to go to jail

Found on The Inquirer on Tuesday, 28 September 2004
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If you file swap more than 1000 music files you could be punished by three years in prison under a new law passed in the US.

The US House of Representatives has agreed to take the attack of file-sharers carried out by the movie and file industry out of the civil courts and make it a criminal offence.

Now the FBI will pursue those who allow others to copy their music collections through "peer to peer" networks like Kazaa and Morpheus. Agents will now investigate intellectual-property crimes and allow them to send warnings to users they suspect of copying songs illegally. Those found to be sharing more than 1,000 copyrighted files could face jail.

A sponsor of the bill said that the Internet has revolutionised how Americans locate information, shop and communicate, but it must not become a haven for criminals.

Great idea. Use the resources of the FBI to hunt down those evil evil subjects who try to kill our friend, the almighty music industry. Caring about real crime doesn't matter anyway, since money is more important than people.