RIAA Countersued, Plot Thickens

The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has been relentless in its pursuit of those individuals found to be taking part in peer-to-peer music sharing. Numerous lawsuits have been filed by the RIAA, most of which are settled out of court for an arbitrary fee. One defendant, however, is fighting back against the RIAA's legal attacks. Sixteen-year-old Robert Santangelo is being sued by the RIAA for online music piracy that allegedly occurred as far back as five years ago. Santangelo filed a countersuit against the RIAA on Tuesday, accusing the organization of violating antitrust laws, conspiring to defraud the courts and making extortionate threats. Santagelo and his lawyer, Jordan Glass, filed a total of 32 counter-complaints against the RIAA. The Recording Industry Association of America issued a statement in an RIAA has vehemently pursued litigation against alleged pirates, a strategy that has been met with little resistance until now. Santangelo and his attorney claim that the RIAA's legal tactics are a method of extortion and that the organization is defrauding the court by making use of the legal system to further its alleged monopolistic agenda. The RIAA originally sued Santangelo's mother, but those charges were dropped after it was discovered that she barely knew how to operate a computer, much less mastermind a peer-to-peer file sharing service. This will be a pivotal case for the future of peer-to-peer networks, and definitely one worth keeping an eye on. Add to Del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit | Furl Joe is a staff writer for latest ebusiness news