Good LA Times editorial on the damage the recording industry is doing to its cause by threatening to sue thousands of American file-sharers. Turns out that you can get a lot of play in Congress by playing victim, but bullies don't get the same amount of sympathy.
"I would guess that you would then see stories about the family faced with economic ruin and the cost of having to hire defense counsel, settling for $10,000 or $20,000, and the money they were saving for Timmy's college education now has to go to Kid Rock," said Philip S. Corwin, a lobbyist in Washington for Sharman Networks, distributor of the Kazaa file-sharing software.
"That's the kind of stuff that would scare a politician."
Even Rep. Howard L. Berman (D-North Hollywood), a frequent ally of the entertainment industry, said the labels' standing in Congress would suffer if they "overreach and refuse to settle these issues reasonably." But, he added, "I don't think their goal is to collect a huge amount of revenue through the vehicle of lawsuits; I think it is to deter continued illegal conduct."
