Congress Weighs in on Campus Music File Sharing

Congress has been tackling the P2P vs. RIAA college campus standoff. But don't look for an amicable solution anytime soon that will satisfy students' desire for free music file sharing and the music industry's drive to stem the loss of profits.

Ars Technica has a good recap of the House Committee on Science and Technology hearings that pulled together university officials and music and motion picture execs into one chamber to hash out solutions.

From Ars Technica:

"Universities are clear on their position: they do not see themselves as extensions of either the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) or the MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America) and are reluctant to get into the game of chasing down students and disciplining them at the behest of such organizations. Congress, however, is making it clear that they expect schools to do something, and the RIAA is waiting in the wings, promising to increase their use of pre-litigation letters."

The music industry is pressuring schools to adopt technology solutions, including network monitoring services and traffic tools, but there is a justifiable concern that schools will spend hundreds of thousands of dollars implementing new technologies that will only be outwitted quickly by enterprising students.

A University of Utah administrator said the school has had success with a technology solution, Audible Magic's CopySense, which stops the sharing of files it recognizes. The school has seen a 90 percent drop in complaints from the RIAA and the MPAA, and the school has saved $1.2 million in bandwidth fees and personnel costs.

But guess what? The University of Chicago reports that they have had a similar drop in file sharing and in related costs by educating students of the perils of piracy. Expect more schools to take this approach rather than the very costly technological route.

Stay tuned. For more P2P and RIAA reading:

LINK: Congress, RIAA and universities prepare for P2P "arms race" [Ars Technica] 

Related on Yahoo! Tech: 

RIAA Demands Payments from College Students
Music Industry Steps up Campus Complaints