June 22, 2009 12:53 PM

File-Sharing Mom Fights Back

By
Edecio Martinez
Topics
Cybercrime
Thomas-Rasset and her attorney joined The Early Show to share their outrage over the lawsuit and how they plan to fight it.

NEW YORK(CBS/AP) If you share your music online, perhaps you should start saving now.

Last week we reported on a Minnesota mom who defended herself against the recording industry and got slapped with $1.92 million in fines for sharing 24 songs over the Internet.

Today, Jammie Thomas-Rasset was on CBS' The Early Show to make her case.

Thomas-Rasset was sued by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for pirating music. But unlike most of the more than 30,000 other targets of RIAA pirating lawsuits, Thomas-Rasset fought back. Her case was the first of its kind to go to trial. In 2007 she lost. A jury awarded $222,000 to the RIAA, but the judge threw out the verdict because he believed he gave incorrect instructions to the jury.

That led to a second trial. Thomas-Rasset lost again. This time the jury ordered her to pay a whopping $1.92 million, or $80,000 per song.

"There's no way they're ever going to get that," Thomas-Rasset said after the verdict. "I'm a mom, limited means, so I'm not going to worry about it now."

Experts are divided on what the case means to the music industry. The heavy-handed verdict could intimidate those who share music online or create a negative backlash against an industry that is now trying to offer paid downloads as an alternative to swapping music for free.

PREVIOUSLY ON CRIMESIDER
June 19, 2009 - File-Sharing Mom Fined $1.9 Million
June 15, 2009 - Mom Against The Music Industry


Add a Comment
by Domenic_U June 24, 2009 6:01 AM EDT
Jammie Thomas Rasset has been making headlines as a person who has been made an example of, who really doesn't deserve it. Jammie Thomas Rasset has been sued by the RIAA for illegal downloading from Kazaa, and they want some instant cash to the tune of $1.9 million, for downloading 24 songs ? 2 CDs worth. Intellectual property needs to be preserved, but given the history of the music industry, even a casual examination reveals that they only care about the gravy train, rather than the artist's intellectual property, and many recording contracts give almost all licensing to the record companies, which is who is behind the huge need for <a rev="vote for" title="Jammie Thomas-Rasset Loses $1.9 Million Suit by RIAA" href="http://personalmoneystore.com/Cash-Advance/cash-Advance-Loans/">cash advance loans</a> of epic proportions for Jammie Thomas Rasset.
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by stickdog3 June 22, 2009 3:12 PM EDT
I think I've missed out on this advanced society we're in. First off, how does these songs wind up on the internet? How do brand new movies end up being sold on the street the very first day they come out? If I'm a record executive and have a hot act thats coming out with a record. I'm going to make sure that I'm the only one with the master recording, and that I know exactly who I'm giving copies to. Sounds like theres places on the internet that people can go to and get these songs. Why would you put something like that on the 'net? Its like telling a child who loves bubble gum. Don't touch that gum on the table until I come back home. Temptation is a mother isn't it? And another thing this woman says she's a mom how does she have time to get on the internet and download music? Some mom. Thats why I still haven't got fascinated about the internet iphones, social network sites, and all these other other futuristic gizmos. Please, enjoy life and what you can see in front of you, its ok to have curiosity its built into humans and life is to be enjoyed and some of the above mentioned things are designed to enhance that enjoyment I understand that, but not to become obsessed with.
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