Madster

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Madster (initially called Aimster) [1] was a peer-to-peer file sharing service. [2] It was released in Napster's wake in August 2000 [3] shut down in December 2002 as a result of a lawsuit by the Recording Industry Association of America.

Contents

Origin

According to John Deep, a professor at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, [3] the Madster software was originally inspired by his daughter's use of instant messaging software. [2] His idea was to combine instant messaging with file sharing. [2] John Deep's daughter Aimee had an interest in providing privacy to her online friends; instant messaging was lacking when it came to privacy protection. [4]

Features

The Control Panel and File Search windows in Madster showing search results after a search for "Bob Dylan". Madster-screenshot.png
The Control Panel and File Search windows in Madster showing search results after a search for "Bob Dylan".

The Madster service was initially called Aimster, but it was later renamed to Madster due to concerns that the Aimster name infringed AOL's AIM (AOL Instant Messenger) trademark. [1] The Madster software allowed users to share files via instant messaging services. [1] In particular, users could share files specifically with users who were included on a "buddy list" with the advantage of privacy. [5]

Around March 2001, support for encrypted network communications was included in a new release of the Madster software (at the time, the Aimster name was still in use.) [6] Among other things, the Madster service hoped that the US Digital Millennium Copyright Act would have the effect of prohibiting others from monitoring the encrypted Madster network communications. [6] In addition, the Madster operators argued that the encryption meant that they could not be aware of any copyright infringement that took place. [7] Later on, around April-May 2001, a service was introduced wherein a network including tens of thousands of people could be searched for music and other content and new users would by default be added to this network although users could choose to instead restrict trading to buddy list members. [5] At one point, the company announced a premium service that was available for US$4.95 per month. [1]

PC Magazine gave Madster a 1 out of 5 rating of "Dismal," based on interface design, partner advertising, and content selection. [8]

Recording industry collaboration

In 2000, for a short time, Capitol Records authorized Madster (which was called Aimster at the time) to provide some Radiohead video files on the service's Web site and to release a skin for the Madster software that had a Radiohead theme. [9] This collaboration was done for the purpose of promoting a new Radiohead album. [9]

In December 2002, the company was ordered by a federal judge to disconnect its computer systems from the Internet. [10] Earlier on in September, the court stated that Aimster had knowledge of copyright infringements, including a Web-based "Aimster Guardian" tutorial that showed copyrighted materials and the tracking of popular songs on the service via "Club Aimster"; the latter also indicated contribution to infringing activity and the monthly fees for the service indicated a financial interest for the Aimster operators in conjunction with infringing usage. [11] The requirement for users to sign up and log in to use the service meant that Aimster was in a position to control the activities of its users. [11] The injunction to disconnect was upheld in June 2003 by the decision in In re Aimster Copyright Litigation of the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. [7] In particular, it was found that Madster's support of encrypted file sharing was "willful blindness" and was not a valid defense with regard to copyright infringement. [7] At the same time, a company could avoid copyright liability if it was "highly burdensome" for the company to detect and prevent copyright infringement. [7] In January 2004, the US Supreme Court refused without explanation to hear an appeal of the lower court's ruling. [10]

Madster was represented in court by Boies, Schiller & Flexner, the same law firm which defended Napster. [12] In 2005, Deep sued Boies for malpractice and misappropriation, but lost the case in 2008. [13]

Related Research Articles

AIM (software) Instant messaging service

AIM was an instant messaging and presence computer program created by AOL, which used the proprietary OSCAR instant messaging protocol and the TOC protocol to allow registered users to communicate in real time.

Kazaa Media Desktop is a discontinued peer-to-peer file sharing application using the FastTrack protocol licensed by Joltid Ltd. and operated as Kazaa by Sharman Networks. Kazaa was subsequently under license as a legal music subscription service by Atrinsic, Inc. According to one of its creators, Jaan Tallinn, Kazaa is pronounced ka-ZAH (/kəˈzaː/).

LimeWire is a music-based NFT platform that was originally a free software peer-to-peer file sharing (P2P) client for Windows, OS X, Linux and Solaris. LimeWire uses the gnutella network as well as the BitTorrent protocol. A zero-cost version and a purchasable "enhanced" version were available; LimeWire Pro could be acquired through the regular LimeWire software without payment, as users distributed it through the software without authorization. BitTorrent support is provided by libtorrent. The company is a joint venture by the original LimeWire team and the Zehetmayr brothers

Napster On-line peer-to-peer file sharing software

Napster was an audio streaming service provider. It originally launched on June 1, 1999, as a pioneering peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing software service with an emphasis on digital audio file distribution. Audio songs shared on the service were typically encoded in the MP3 format. It was founded by Shawn Fanning and Sean Parker. As the software became popular, the company ran into legal difficulties over copyright infringement. It ceased operations in 2001 after losing a wave of lawsuits and filed for bankruptcy in June 2002.

Instant messaging Form of communication over the Internet

Instant messaging (IM) technology is a type of online chat allowing real-time text transmission over the Internet or another computer network. Messages are typically transmitted between two or more parties, when each user inputs text and triggers a transmission to the recipient(s), who are all connected on a common network. It differs from email in that conversations over instant messaging happen in real-time. Most modern IM applications use push technology and also add other features such as emojis, file transfer, chatbots, voice over IP, or video chat capabilities.

Grokster Ltd. was a privately owned software company based in Nevis, West Indies that created the Grokster peer-to-peer file-sharing client in 2001 that used the FastTrack protocol. Grokster Ltd. was rendered extinct in late 2005 by the United States Supreme Court's decision in MGM Studios, Inc. v. Grokster, Ltd. The court ruled against Grokster's peer-to-peer file sharing program for computers running the Microsoft Windows operating system, effectively forcing the company to cease operations.

Earth Station 5 (ES5) was a peer-to-peer network active between 2003 and 2005, operated by a company of the same name. The user client application also shared this name. Earth Station 5 was notable for its strong, if overstated, emphasis on user anonymity, and for its bold advocacy of piracy and copyright infringement. ES5's highly antagonistic position toward copyright advocacy and enforcement organizations garnered the group significant attention and peaked with an ES5 press release announcing a "declaration of war" against the Motion Picture Association of America. ES5 claimed to operate out of the Jenin in the Palestinian Authority-controlled West Bank, a region where they argued that copyright laws were unenforceable. Investigative journalism cast serious doubts on the company's Palestinian origin as well as many of its other claims. To this day, much about the company and its leadership remains uncertain or unknown.

MGM Studios, Inc. v. Grokster, Ltd., 545 U.S. 913 (2005), is a United States Supreme Court decision in which the Court unanimously held that defendant peer-to-peer file sharing companies Grokster and Streamcast could be sued for inducing copyright infringement for acts taken in the course of marketing file sharing software. The plaintiffs were a consortium of 28 of the largest entertainment companies.

A file-hosting service, cloud-storage service, online file-storage provider, or cyberlocker is an internet hosting service specifically designed to host user files. It allows users to upload files that could be accessed over the internet after a user name and password or other authentication is provided. Typically, the services allow HTTP access, and sometimes FTP access. Related services are content-displaying hosting services, virtual storage, and remote backup.

<i>A&M Records, Inc. v. Napster, Inc.</i> US legal case

A&M Records, Inc. v. Napster, Inc., 239 F.3d 1004 (2001) was a landmark intellectual property case in which the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed the ruling of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, holding that defendant, peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing service Napster, could be held liable for contributory infringement and vicarious infringement of the plaintiffs' copyrights. This was the first major case to address the application of copyright laws to peer-to-peer file sharing.

<i>In re Aimster Copyright Litigation</i>

In re Aimster Copyright Litigation, 334 F.3d 643, was a case in which the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit addressed copyright infringement claims brought against Aimster, concluding that a preliminary injunction against the file-sharing service was appropriate because the copyright owners were likely to prevail on their claims of contributory infringement, and that the services could have non-infringing users was insufficient reason to reverse the district court's decision. The appellate court also noted that the defendant could have limited the quantity of the infringements if it had eliminated an encryption system feature, and if it had monitored the use of its systems. This made it so that the defense did not fall within the safe harbor of 17 U.S.C. § 512(i). and could not be used as an excuse to not know about the infringement. In addition, the court decided that the harm done to the plaintiff was irreparable and outweighed any harm to the defendant created by the injunction.

This is a timeline of events in the history of networked file sharing.

Peer-to-peer file sharing is the distribution and sharing of digital media using peer-to-peer (P2P) networking technology. P2P file sharing allows users to access media files such as books, music, movies, and games using a P2P software program that searches for other connected computers on a P2P network to locate the desired content. The nodes (peers) of such networks are end-user computers and distribution servers.

File sharing is the practice of distributing or providing access to digital media, such as computer programs, multimedia, program files, documents or electronic books/magazines. It involves various legal aspects as it is often used to exchange data that is copyrighted or licensed.

Audiogalaxy Music sharing service

Audiogalaxy was an Internet music service with three incarnations. From 1998 to 2002, it was a file sharing system that indexed MP3 files. From mid-2002 to mid-2010, it was a promotional website for the Rhapsody music subscription service. Finally, from mid-2010 through 2012, it was a personal audio place shifting service. Audiogalaxy ceased operations on January 31, 2013.

Copyright infringement Usage of a copyrighted work without the authors permission

Copyright infringement is the use of works protected by copyright without permission for a usage where such permission is required, thereby infringing certain exclusive rights granted to the copyright holder, such as the right to reproduce, distribute, display or perform the protected work, or to make derivative works. The copyright holder is typically the work's creator, or a publisher or other business to whom copyright has been assigned. Copyright holders routinely invoke legal and technological measures to prevent and penalize copyright infringement.

Recording Industry Association of America Trade organization representing the recording industry in the U.S.

The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/or distribute approximately 85% of all legally sold recorded music in the United States". RIAA is headquartered in Washington, D.C.

Music piracy is the copying and distributing of recordings of a piece of music for which the rights owners did not give consent. In the contemporary legal environment, it is a form of copyright infringement, which may be either a civil wrong or a crime depending on jurisdiction. The late 20th and early 21st centuries saw much controversy over the ethics of redistributing media content, how much production and distribution companies in the media were losing, and the very scope of what ought to be considered piracy – and cases involving the piracy of music were among the most frequently discussed in the debate.

Metallica, et al. v. Napster, Inc. was a 2000 U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California case that focused on copyright infringement, racketeering, and unlawful use of digital audio interface devices. Metallica vs. Napster, Inc. was the first case that involved an artist suing a peer-to-peer file sharing ("P2P") software company.

Contributory copyright infringement is a way of imposing secondary liability for infringement of a copyright. It is a means by which a person may be held liable for copyright infringement even though he or she did not directly engage in the infringing activity. In the United States, the Copyright Act does not itself impose liability for contributory infringement expressly. It is one of the two forms of secondary liability apart from vicarious liability. Contributory infringement is understood to be a form of infringement in which a person is not directly violating a copyright but, induces or authorises another person to directly infringe the copyright.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 D'Errico, Richard A. (2002-01-25). "Aimster changes name to resolve AOL suit". The Business Review . Retrieved 2010-11-24.
  2. 1 2 3 Klein, Alec (2001-02-25), "Going Napster One Better", The Washington Post , p. A01, retrieved 2010-11-17
  3. 1 2 "McGeorge Law Review". 35. 2004: 188. Retrieved 2013-12-31.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  4. ↑ Borland, John (2001-05-23). "Last of the free song traders". CNET News . Retrieved 2010-11-17.
  5. 1 2 Borland, John (2001-05-25). "RIAA sues Aimster over file swapping - CNET News". CNET News . Retrieved 2014-04-07.
  6. 1 2 "Aimster fights record industry with its own fuel - CNET News". CNET News. 2001-03-02. Retrieved 2010-11-24.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Festa, Paul (2003-06-30). "Court: Anonymous P2P no defense - CNET News". CNET News . Retrieved 2010-11-24.
  8. ↑ Metz, Cade (2002-03-12). "Madster Review & Rating | PCMag.com". Ziff Davis . Retrieved 2014-04-07.
  9. 1 2 Borland, John (2000-09-26). "Major label breaks file-trading boycott - CNET News". CNET News . Retrieved 2010-12-07.
  10. 1 2 McCullagh, Declan (2004-01-13). "High court turns deaf ear to Aimster - CNET News". CNET News . Retrieved 2010-11-17.
  11. 1 2 Ballon, Ian C. (2003-08-09). "Digital Entertainment and Intellectual Property Law 2003" (PDF). American Bar Association. p. 34–35. Retrieved 2014-04-07.
  12. ↑ Menta, Robert (2001-03-03). "Aimster Sues the Record Industry". MP3 Newswire. Archived from the original on 2001-05-05.
  13. ↑ "AN AIMSTER MISSES". NY Real Estate Law Blog. 2008-10-01. Retrieved 2013-12-10.
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