Universities seek solution for illegal downloads
Previous school years drew 20 American educational establishments a contract for entry till a legal online music service as Napster, RealNetworks Rhapsody or MusicNet. The universities and colleges hope with that abuse to avoid of the school network through students. It appears to help, for a report of the American Congres reports falls back that pear-to-pear network traffic at universities often till the half. Only although the schools subscribe can on often bottom price, pay the parents finally the bill.
The most recent acquisition for the online music services is the Northern Illinois University. From September, 2,500 students of the university entry will get till the online catalog of Ruckus Network brimming music, Tv-series, movies and own content. The university pays for this service 5 dollars per student. Yet is the entry till the media strictly screened: the students cannot the music or movies download and burn on cd.
Especially Napster, ever notorious for its illegal music network only present a legal downloadservice, very has been committed in the bringing in of new contracts. The business furnishes her music data bank already at eight universities. Press messages about these deals appear to pull other educational establishments as a herd of sheep about the line, as the IT-manager of Wright State University admits. The university sign according to him by Napster after “the reading of papers articles about Pennsylvania State University and Rochester”, two other customers of Napster.
The universities try to avoid through these agreements scrupulously legal problems with copyrights organizations. Through legal music truce free or at low cost price on to offer, hope they that their students not in the temptation come the universities network to abuse for illegal downloads. On the first face, this appears to work. In the pilot program of the Pennsylvania State University and Napster got the 12,000 sympathetic students sometimes until 100,000 songs per day off.,. But this success has also its other side. The students do not rent turn the media truce ankle during their study years, they finally also on for the expenses.
The ironic at the affair is that the most universities that until now closed subscribed, this did against absolute bottom price or before sponsoring received. Napster for instance has granted that it at the reduced price of 2 until 3 dollars per student per month no money earns. The business hopes to make to get on long term enough universities on board finally source profit.
In the near future threaten then also mainly the parents of the students on for these contracts to turn. Wright State University for instance warns though that if the test with Napster a success becomes, the annual communication invoice for the students possibly will rise the subscriptions expense for Napster to cover. The IT-manager of the university value that expense on 32 dollars per year.