Napster Problem or Solution

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Napster Problem or Solution In mid-1999, 19 year old Northeastern University student Shawn Fanning designed a computer program that allowed one to log on to a central server, and be able to download mp3 music files from another computer at lightning speed, with great ease. He called this program Napster, after his old high school nickname. Since it's inception, Napster has sparked court cases involving every major record company in North America, and created a worldwide debate about copyright infringement and it's effects on the music industry. Napster is a peer to peer file-sharing program designed specifically for the exchange of MPEG 1 Layer 3,also known as MP3, digital audio files. These files are super-compressed audio that would normally be more than ten times larger than they are as MP3s. This is because MP3s special coding cuts down on file size while maintaining nearly all noticeable sound quality. Because of this people use MP3s to record songs and store them on their computers. They can be played using many different pieces of audio software available such as Nullsoft's Winamp and Microsoft Windows Media Player. Napster is designed to facilitate the easy searching and exchanging of MP3 files by allowing users to search for specific songs or artists and displaying a list of those songs available through other Napster users. This is great for users who want to enjoy free music but the record companies aren't quite as happy about this. They are concerned that Napster steals money from them and the artists that they represent. This is because if Napster users get songs for free from other users, they won't be paying the record companies for CDs. Luckily for the record companies, ther... ... middle of paper ... ... examine how many users would cease to use Napster with its proposed subscription charge. There are several other programs available that, since they have no central server, would be impossible to shut down. These programs, on the other hand, are not as user friendly as Napster, and therefore some users may decide to pay for its ease. As one can deduce from the information presented in this essay, the court case involving Napster and the Recording Industry Association of America is a complex one with no definite right answer. It seems impossible to please the artists, the record companies, and Napster users all with one solution. In the meantime, Napster is a huge force in the dynamic of music today and continues to be enjoyed by thousands of users every day. Bibliography: http://www.napster.com http://www. time.com TIME magazine archives

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