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THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN + WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 26, 2005
SHARING SOUND BY SHANE KUCERA
If Napster had nine lives, it only has a few left.
Napster's newest reincarnation, Napster on Campus, offers its regular services of late — legal music downloading for a fee — to college students for a discounted price through their university.
The University of Kansas could be next in line for a legal university-wide downloading service program, and Napster on Campus could be the service of choice. Student Senate has composed a task force to look into downloading services for the University for two reasons: to avoid further legal action from the music industry against students and, simply, for entertainment.
Because of the music industry's law suits and other problems associated with illegal file-sharing such as the susceptibility to computer viruses, nine universities across the country have teamed up with the Napster on Campus legal downloading service to provide discounted, legal downloads for all students. Cornell, George Washington University, University of Miami, Middlebury College, Penn State, University of Rochester, University of Southern California, Vanderbilt University and Wright State University are currently using Napster's service, either for a trial period or as a permanent legal music service for its students.
Recording industry takes action
The Recording Industry Association of America is filing lawsuits across the nation in an attempt to curb illegal file-sharing. In 2004 the RIAA struck in Lawrence by suing three KU students for illegal downloading. Charlil Johnson, one of the KU students, was sued for $440,000 by the RIAA and settled for approximately $3,000. The prosecution for illegal downloading has been requiring settlements of either $750 per song or a $3,000 penalty. John Fogarty, Napster associate director of business
development, says it is in everyone's best interest to see Napster used on college campuses. "File-sharing is an experience we want students to take advantage of in a legal setting." he says.
The normal subscription price for Napster is $9.95 per month, but with the help of label partners, Fogarty says prices can be deeply discounted, up to 70 percent, for a university.
Colleges that use Napster's service offer a number of different payment plans. The most unique payment plan of the nine universities currently using Napster's program is Cornell, which has corporate sponsors that fund most of the downloading service. Fogarty says it is most common for a university to contract to have the program provided to all students rather than giving the individual student the option to subscribe.
Jeff Dunlap, student body vice president, says the University will be looking to students for financial support of the program because funding opportunities are limited.
Ted Frederickson, professor of journalism who teaches a class on Internet law, says that universities cannot be sued for copyright infringement as long as the university cooperates when it is informed that students are illegally sharing files. Frederickson says this puts universities in an uncomfortable position of having to police online behavior of students—a position that could be solved by a University-provided legal music service. He also points out that, ironically, such a program would create a major exception in the University's policy that says its computer network is to be used only for university business and educational purposes.
Benefits of a legal music program such as Napster on Campus include legal access to over 800,000 songs, custom playlists and commercial-free radio. Legal music downloading programs can
also guarantee quality along with security for the students. Music labels provide their songs directly to the program so a user does not have to be concerned about corrupt files or viruses. Vincent Buhr, ResNet residential communication consultant, says that he doesn't believe illegal downloading is a serious issue, but a legal downloading service could help with virus-related problems.
Reason for hesitation
Downloading services such as Napster use "tethered downloading," a service that is similar to renting a movie — only you get to keep the movie, or song, until your subscription runs out. With tethered下载ing, songs cannot be burned onto a CD or moved to an MP3 player unless the user pays $0.99 per track or $9.95 per album.
"Those prices could get steep really fast," Chance Heinz, Garden City sophomore says. "But, a buck a song or 10 bucks for a CD isn't too bad for what prices are at today."
Money, of course, is a major concern with the downloading service for universities. Jael Hull, San Antonio sophomore, and Mark Miller, Olathe senior, agree that if the University decides to contract with a service provider the fee should be optional for all students, similar to how bus passes and sports packages are paid for.
Gregory D. Freix, director of information systems for the School of Business, says that it is important to look into the opportunity cost of implementing such a program at the University. "Anytime you spend money in one area, you don't have money for something else, and I don't think any of us at KU are rolling in dough." Freix says.
Napster on other campuses
Why here and why now?
Cornell University: Corporate sponsors fund most of the cost and an unrestricted gifts fund in Student and Academic Services covers the remainder.
Dunlap, who is a member of the task force looking into the downloading service, says that student fees already pay for a variety of programs that are of a personal interest, such as the Newspaper Readership Program and Legal Services for Students. A downloading service is not a huge departure from the norm, Dunlap says.
Cornell University: Corporate sponsors fund most of the cost and an unrestricted gifts fund in Student and Academic Services covers the remainder.
George Washington University: Now in the pilot-program phase, residence hall students receive a subscription paid for by the university.
Penn State: All students pay a flat fee for the program through their technology fee.
University of Southern California: Students have the option to use the program for $10 per semester or $20 for the full academic year.
Wright State University: During the one-year pilot project the university will cover all on-campus student costs and off-campus students have the option to subscribe for $20 for a full academic year.
Dunlap assures that only after a direct popular vote by students in favor of a legal downloading service contract will a program be put in place. If Student Senate finds a feasible contract and it is supported by a referendum vote, Dunlap says he hopes a program will be in place for the fall 2005 semester.
Source: Each university's Napster website — Paired by Megan Claw
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