Seeking to end a protracted legal battle, Napster's lawyers offered $1 billion in reparations to songwriters and major record labels on Monday, and announced a plan to institute a membership-based service by this summer.
A week after the United State Court of Appeals for the Ninth District ruled that the popular online music service serves as a conduit for copyright infringement, company representatives said they will charge users between $5.95 and $9.95 per month for a "premium membership," which would allow individuals to download an unlimited number of songs. A basic membership, for a monthly fee in the $2.95 to $4.95 range, could also be offered, and would include a monthly file transfer limit.
The $1 billion settlement is based on Napster's income projections and would be distributed over the next five years. Recipients' shares would depend on their percentage of files downloads.
The proposal, however, has not yet been accepted by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) - the umbrella group that sued Napster.
Napster officials said the pricing scheme was developed last October, but waited until after the court decision to offer the concession to the RIAA.
"You might have noticed that we got some pretty bad news last week from the court of appeals," reads a Napster press release. "Now that the industry has the legal precedent they were seeking, it is time to reach an agreement. The RIAA has been saying the consumer comes first, the consumer comes second, and the consumer comes third. If the industry has the consumer, and their own bottom line in mind, there is an agreement to be had here."
If the RIAA does not accept the terms, the court battles could continue. But on Tuesday, RIAA President and CEO Hilary Rosen suggested she is open to negotiations: "Our member company plaintiffs have always said that they stand ready and willing to meet individually with [Napster] to discuss future licenses. This path would be more productive than trying to engage in business negotiations through the media," Rosen said.
Napster officials are hopeful the new membership-based system will prove profitable. Napster spokesmen, citing company research, said that a large number of current users will agree to pay for the service. "We do know that Napster has become an important part of daily life for a lot of people," they said.
Some Tufts students say they are willing to pay for their downloading addiction - to a point. "I'd pay three to five dollars," said sophomore Matt Cravens, "but six to ten is pushing it."
Also affected by the proposed changes are student musicians who use Napster to distribute their music. Sophomore Adam Ross, a bassist for Redshift, said that Napster downloads helped promote his band. "Napster's great. It's a really nice vehicle for us to get our music out," he said. But, he added, "as much as I like file sharing, I can't really defend it."
