Attorney: Napster Will Screen Songs
March 2 -- Popular song-swap service Napster may see radical changes this weekend as the company says it will begin blocking copyrighted songs in anticipation of a court order.
Though a ruling from Judge Marilyn Patel, who is presiding over the case at San Francisco's U.S. District Court, is not immediately expected, Napster attorney David Boies says millions of files will be blocked by the time the injunction goes into effect.
The Recording Industry Association of America has delivered a list of 5,600 copyrighted songs to Napster, and Boies says that Napster has developed a new system of screening file names, which may go into effect this weekend.
"The matter is submitted, and I will issue some kind of preliminary injunction," Patel said after more than two hours of testimony from lawyers representing Napster and the RIAA. Patel gave no hint on when her new injunction might be issued.
A federal appeals court last month backed Patel's decision against Napster, although it told her to amend the order to specify that record labels must identify which of their copyrights were being infringed. Industry analysts say even a modified injunction could pull the plug on Napster because the service is unable to differentiate between copyrighted and uncopyrighted material.
At Friday's hearing, lawyers for Napster sought to persuade Patel to delay the injunction, saying the service was working on blocking material. According to The Associated Press, Boies said Napster had developed a new step in the file-exchange process that could block names, but "the problem is that this will adversely effect performance of the system."
The RIAA, meanwhile, urged Patel to press ahead with a quick injunction, saying delay opens the door to more online music piracy.
After the hearing, RIAA President Hilary Rosen released a statement, saying, "We are grateful for the Court's diligent efforts to fashion an appropriate injunction and look forward to an order which makes clear that the infringing part of Napster's business — taking music that isn't theirs and giving it away — must come to an end."
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