Just under half of the 17 people accused of illegally sharing music over the web by the Irish Recorded Music Association (Irma) have admitted liability and agreed to settle out of court, Jamie Smyth, Technology Reporter.
Eight internet account holders have told Irma that they will not engage in illegal sharing of music in the future. They have also agreed to pay damages of €2,000 to €6,000 to prevent legal action. The internet account holders who have agreed to settle include parents, who have admitted liability on behalf of their children, and at least one firm that did not know that one of its employees was using its network to illegally upload music, according to Irma, which said yesterday it may launch a second wave of legal actions shortly.
Last month Irma wrote to 17 internet account holders, who it claims have been guilty of "uploading" music illegally using file-sharing networks on the web. File-sharing networks such as KaZaA or Gnutella enable people to link their computers together via the web and share or upload music files stored on the machines. Irma says that at least 230,000 Irish people have downloaded tracks illegally.
In its first wave of legal actions in early July, Irma targeted internet account holders who offered to share more than 500 music tracks on their computers. Dick Doyle, director of Irma, said the common excuse given by people who were not yet admitting responsibility was that the file-sharing was undertaken by someone else using a computer in the same house.
Irma, which held a board meeting yesterday to discuss the issue of illegal file- sharing, is considering launching a new wave of actions against illegal uploaders.
Mr Doyle said its technical consultants had amassed further evidence of illegal file- sharing in April, May and June. Irma says illegal "uploading" or sharing of music on the web made a substantial contribution to a €28 million decline in music sales in the Republic between 2001 and 2004.
Irma's recent action in the Republic follows co-ordinated action in other jurisdictions such as the US and Britain.
The music industry has sent more than 11,000 letters threatening legal action to file-sharers worldwide. It claims most pay the damages and agree never to share music again.