Ares Connect

In the wake of recent highly publicized lawsuits filed by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), many critics are beginning to question the validity of such ludicrous settlements when the financial gain is far outweighed by the cost. Between 2008 and 2009, the RIAA won $1.4 million in lawsuits against consumers alleged to have illegally downloaded music files from popular peer-to-peer filesharing networks—but only at a staggering cost of $64 million.

When the cost of these lawsuits is so ridiculously high, why are the RIAA spending so much money chasing a few hapless individuals? Industry insiders believe it is because the RIAA is determined to prop up the ailing CD industry at any cost, rather than embrace new business models for online music sales.

In recent years, CD sales have been in significant decline as consumers choose to download individual songs rather than buy entire albums. Unfortunately, the RIAA seems to think that they can scare the public into buying CD’s again by chasing a few unlucky individuals through the courts. But critics say that these scare tactics are unlikely to work in the long run so the RIAA is going to have to rethink its policies.

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