The Communique

Issue date: 10/25/07 Section: News

Media Credit: Scott Kintzel Record companies are attempting to crack down on music pirating by pressing charges against people who download music illegally. Students can download music legally with programs such as Rhapsody and iTunes by paying a small fee either monthly or per song.

Imagine driving home after class and hearing a song on the radio that has the most incredible lyrics. Not wanting to scrape up $20 to buy the CD, many students may simply turn on their computer, download the new beat and transfer it to their iPod.

"Downloading music is easy. It's a quick way to get a song when it pops into your head instead of driving to the store to buy the CD," Katie Denard, dental assistant said.

Illegal music downloading is rampant in today's society; it has become the only means by which some people obtain music. However, with the first lawsuit between a user of the shareware giant Kazaa and a slew of recording companies taking place earlier this month, those who obtain songs illegally might want to consider some legal alternatives when creating computer playlists.

The trial began Oct. 2 and ended two days later leaving a Minnesota mom owing a total of $220,000 to several different record companies, according to msnbc.com.

Jammie Thomas made claim to the fact that she had a wireless router, making it easy for anyone to gain access to her Internet and therefore the trail leading to her could just as easily lead to a neighbor or anyone with a laptop and a wireless card near her home. This, according to thewashingtonpost.com, was the key argument against the claims of the record labels.

So where should the online generation go to sate the need for legal and well priced tunes? There is the tried and true method of going to the store and purchasing CDs but there are many other ways to get your music fix and they are quick enough to prevent people from firing up shareware and becoming a target for the music industry.

One of the most popular ways to get music online is through iTunes. Listeners can purchase most songs through the program for 99 cents, allowing iTunes users to pick and choose the songs they wish to download.

Another popular method obtaining music online is through song rental services. Programs, such as Rhapsody, allow people to download songs onto their computer; however, listeners are limited in the number of songs they can rent at one time. Tomas Scheel, Computer Information Systems major, uses Rhapsody. "With Rhapsody I pay around $15 a month and I have can have more then 1,000 songs in a playlist and can download around 30 songs a day without a problem," he said.

Although there are legal alternatives when downloading music, illegal downloading remains popular and the attitude of the recording industry is that they will not stop the civil suits.

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