RIAA: Now suing dead people

[Steve]

The RIAA, bless 'em, first tried to get money out of Mr. Scantlebury, an alledged file sharer, by posing as 'settlement lawyers' and harassing him, but then he was rude enough to die... not that such trickery will stop the mighty RIAA.

In Michigan, in Warner Bros. v. Scantlebury, after learning that the defendant had passed away, the RIAA made a motion to stay the case for 60 days in order to allow the family time to "grieve", after which time they want to start taking depositions of the late Mr. Scantlebury's children:

[Recording Industry vs The People]

(Via Slashdot)

[WLC-1989]

Thoughtful. Give them 60 days to grieve and worry about being bankrupted by the RIAA before they strike.

[UKMuFFiN]

That is hilarious.

[Steve]

They're trying to show that pirating music won't be tolerated. However, their business model doesn't really seem to embrace new technologies, or do an awful lot for artists, thus, they don't really win anyone over with their legal campaign.

It'd be different if people thought RIAA's actions justified, of course, but until they work out that they're doing it all wrong, their legal battles will just continue to alienate them.

[chuckskull]

Ahhh the music industry, idiots.

"I forsee a marked deterioration in American music...and a host of other injuries to music in its artistic manifestations, by virtue—or rather by vice—of the multiplication of the various music-reproducing machines..." -John Philip Sousa on the Player Piano (1906)

"The public will not buy songs that it can hear almost at will by a brief manipulation of the radio dials." -Record Label Executive on FM Radio (1925)

"But now we are faced with a new and very troubling assault on our fiscal security, on our very economic life and we are facing it from a thing called the videocassette recorder." -MPAA on the VCR (1982)

"When the manufacturers hand the public a license to record at home...not only will the songwriter tie a noose around his neck, not only will there be no more records to tape [but] the innocent public will be made an accessory to the destruction of four industries." -ASCAP on the Cassette Tape (1982)

Are we spotting a pattern kids?

Heres a very interesting read about the RIAA http://edge.i-hacked.com/the-truth-about-the-riaa

[WLC-1989]

As chuckskull has pointed out, this has been a 'concern' for nearly a century. Of course, with current technology, it's more in the public eye than ever before.

What I find most abhorrant, is how the RIAA is able to sue for $125,000 dollars for every song supposedly downloaded. I'm unsure as to whether they'd ever be awarded that, but to ask for it is ridiculous, and only goes to blacken their name.

[chuckskull]

If anyone is interested the RIAA has dropped the case against his estate out of "an abundabce of sensitivity", which they suddenly found when the story was posted on almost every news site in the world.

[atrull]

60 days to put all your belongings into a private trust and claim complete bankruptcy

[Jonny]

That is hilarious.

[UKMuFFiN]

You know what i mean

hilariously stupid

[LuNi9]

That is hilarious.

hardly, i think the RIAA are being pathetic