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March 12, 2004

Following the lead of American record companies and their civil litigation against individuals who download music off of the internet, a highly contentious trial is in process to determine whether the identities of 29 individuals will be handed over to corporate music labels by the country's largest internet service providers.

The recording industry got very little positive press coverage or public sympathy by going after little old grandmothers and teenagers down south, and is similarly unlikely to achieve anything but outrage here in Canada.

For companies like Shaw Communications, Rogers Cable and Bell Canada, if they are forced to betray the anonymity of their customers, the backlash could be huge, while setting a dangerous precedent for other types of information requests in other legal situations.

Until the record companies begin to wake up and understand that new revenue models must be designed and implemented in the face of music downloading, then these ludicrous examples of David and Goliath civil lawsuits will continue. 

This strategy is like trying to put one's finger in the hole of a dam ready to explode.  To record executives everywhere, try spending some time constructing a device that will effectively float on the ever continuing tidal wave of free information rather than trying to find a band-aid solution that is bound to fail.

Comments? jonathan@tdhstrategies.com