♥ Simply Sugared

Music downloaders beware: The heat is on in S'pore, too

As in US, industry here is gunning for those who flout copyright online

By Natalie Soh

MUSIC file-swoppers in Singapore, take note. You could get into trouble if you are downloading songs illegally.

The Recording Industry Association of Singapore (Rias), which protects the copyrights of artistes here, will be going after individuals for file-sharing violations, in much the same way as its American counterpart is taking action in a well-publicised campaign in America.

And the consequences could be severe. Technology lawyer Bryan Tan told The Straits Times that under the Singapore Copyright Law, a person caught distributing illegal MP3 files could be fined up to $100,000 and/or jailed for up to five years.

Rias has identified individual offenders, and has already taken legal action against some.

It has warned that file-swoppers cannot count on the anonymity of the Internet to hide their activities either.

Rias' chief executive officer Edward Neubronner told The Straits Times: 'Rias has taken action against persons who infringe copyright over the Internet, and will not hesitate to continue to do so.

'Those who think that the Internet offers anonymity so that they can get away with copyright infringement should think again.'

Illegal music downloads and file-sharing networks like Kazaa and Morpheus have been targeted by record companies recently in a high-profile drive.

The music industry blames online piracy for the fact that sales of CDs have dropped by a quarter since 1999.

To stop this slide, it is taking legal action against individuals who download and share music illegally.

More than 1,000 subpoenas, requiring Internet service providers to reveal the names of music swoppers, have been issued over the last four weeks.

And the scare tactics, though vilified by some, seem to be working. Traffic on Kazaa, the most popular song-sharing site, has dropped steadily since its peak in March of 17.4 million home users. This figure dropped to 14 million last month, a decline of 20 per cent.

Previous reports put the number of broadband subscribers here who regularly download music at 500,000.

Add the fact that almost all the music files found on the Internet are illegal copies, and the picture is of a large number of Singaporeans who breach intellectual property laws. But Rias is working to change that.

Mr Neubronner said it has identified people who are breaking the law, and last year, a university student was arrested for engaging in this form of piracy.

He declined to say what punishment was meted out to the student.

Several surfers The Straits Times spoke to expressed, variously, nonchalance and fear about the moves.

Mr H. Ang, 22, a student, said: 'All that's happening in America, no one cares about Singapore because we are so small. Don't worry.'

He says he downloads music because he does not like the idea of buying an entire album for just one good song - which he can get free.

But Mr Neubronner stresses that there can be no justification for theft.

'Consumers have a choice whether to buy a product or not. However if they choose not to for some reason or other, it's no excuse to steal it.'

The warnings will work with some, like Miss C. Chiang, 27, who works in an advertising consultancy.

She is more than rattled. When told of Rias' move, she deleted all 80 songs stored in her computer and has sworn off the practice.

'It's funny. When the industry was targeting the networks and stuff, it felt as if it didn't affect me.

'But now, when they say they are looking for individuals... it makes me think twice.'