The music industry is stepping up efforts to stanch illegally downloaded music over campus computer networks. The AP reports that the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is sending thousands more complaints to colleges, asking them to take action against individual students who have downloaded music for free over peer-to-peer (P2P) networks.

Music sharing over P2P networks, such as BitTorrent and Gnutella, is as much a part of campus life as keg parties and all-nighters. Many universities take a hands-over-the-eyes approach to file sharing, as Chris Null found at the start of this school year. But some schools are stepping up action in response to the music industry's efforts.

From the AP story:

• At Michigan State University, students caught twice for illegally downloading music files must sit through an anti-piracy DVD made by the RIAA. If they are caught a third time, they can be suspended. The university received 783 complaints from the RIAA in December alone.

• At the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, students get warnings the first and second time they are cited for illegal downloads. The third time, the university shuts down a student's Internet connection and sends the case to a dean for possible further punishment.

• But at Purdue University in Indiana, which received 1,068 complaints so far this year, administrators take another tack. They rarely notifiy students because they do not agree that it's the school's role to track down students, which takes time and resources.

The music industry can identify an individual student who has illegally downloaded a music file only by his or her numerical Internet address. Only the school has the ability to trace that address to identify an individual student by name.

To all the parents who are wondering what all this is about, check out this P2P primer post for an overview of peer-to-peer networks and sharing files. 

At the heart of this is the battle over DRM (digital rights management) and whether it's time for the music industry to find another way to protect copyrighted music. (Check out this USA Today story on this issue.) As Steve Jobs said in his now-famous open letter to the music industry, only 2 percent of music found on iPods is purchased from the iTunes store.  In the meantime, college students shouldn't be surprised if they find emails in their inboxes saying they've got some 'splaining to do.

Related:

A Survey of U.S. Universities' Peer-to-Peer Policies
P2P Primer for Parents 
Steve Jobs Finally Stands up Against DRM. Sort of