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Music2pc: Find, Download Millions of Songs Online for Free – Even at Work!

Jared Moya — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 19:09:16 +0000

Free program with no ads, spyware, or malware of any kind allows users to search among more than 100 million MP3s online and download them to a computer or USB drive for free; program can also run from a USB drive, making it safe to use at work.

Looking for a LimeWire alternative? Want to safely download music at work? Then Music2pc might just be the program you're looking for. Music2pc is free program that allows users to search its online database of more than 100 million MP3s for songs to download for free. Downloaded music can be played directly from the program itself. It contains no ads, spyware, or malware of any kind, and is non-P2P, making it safe to use without fear of being busted by overzealous copyright enforcement organizations. Program highlights:

Download over 100 million mp3 songs with unmatchable speed, best output quality
Safe, non-BitTorrent and non-P2P file-sharing method
Find any music easily, only with the song title, artist name, album or edition
Safe to install and run, no malware, no ads, no viruses
Hugest selection of publicly available tracks
Search the live, piano, guitar or cover versions of your favorite songs
Compatible with all portable devices: iPad, iPhone, PSP, cell phone, mp3 player etc.
Multi-thread downloading, download multiple songs at the same time
Download the hottest songs across all genres, from electronic to religious, mainstream to indie, hip-hop to classical, etc.
Simple and intuitive interface ensures you to easily get any music you want

All you have to do is enter the name of the artist or song you're looking for and select "search." Then choose the desired song and select "download." It's that easy. The best part of music2pc is that it's also portable, meaning you can run it from a USB drive at a friends house or at work! So, now you can enjoy music at home or on the go. It works on Microsoft Windows 2000, XP, Vista, Windows 7 or Windows 2003 and 2008 Server. Stay tuned. jared@zeropaid.com | @jaredmoya

Download music2pc > Desktop | Portable

RIAA’s VP of Strategic Data Analysis Issues Statement On Megaupload Shutdown

Jon Kaykin — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 01:46:19 +0000

RIAA's VP of Strategic Data Analysis believes that the shutdown of Megaupload and other P2P file sharing sites is mandatory and will decrease file sharing. Truthfully, it will upset many. Megaupload's shutdown by the Justice Department has caused a lot of controversy regarding piracy and whether file sharing sites like Megaupload should exist. One of the major supporters of the shutdown was the Recording Industry Association of America, naturally because they handle copyrighted music and want to make sure that no "unauthorized content including music, movies, and other copyrighted works" is shared. The shutdown led the RIAA's Vice President, of Strategic Data Analysis, Josh P. Friedlander, to issue a statement on their blog, titled Why Closing Megaupload Matters. Although, the post is aimed towards Megaupload, it mainly points out why they believe closing P2P services is important, alluding to Limewire's shutdown. Supposedly, the shutdown of Limewire, according to the NPD group, decreases the use of P2P file sharing but really, with all the P2P file sharing sites out there, I find it hard to believe there is a decline in use. Friedlander also points out, "Digital music sales that had been flagging jumped in the month immediately after the Limewire shutdown, and have remained stronger ever since (note that while the Beatles did go on iTunes in November of 2010, they only account for a small portion of that sales increase, and current music sales went up even more than catalog). When Billboard looked at the data after the Limewire shutdown it said “The spike in sales was immediate, noticeable and lasting." A chart of the sales spikes in 2011 can be seen below. While this evidence may support the shutdown of P2P file sharing sites, the problem is that it doesn't matter. Shutting down these sites will not, as Friedlander says, "encourage users to go to legitimate sites," rather it will make them upset and angry, as in the case of Pirates of Catalonia, a political party in Catalonia that supports intellectual property reform, open access to culture and knowledge, transparency and Direct Democracy. They have announced a collective civil action in Spain against the FBI because the shutdown has caused many users to lose files containing personal information and this may have violated Articles 197 and 198 of the Spanish Penal Code. It's understandable that many artists (and there record labels) want to be compensated for their hard work but in the case of many Megaupload users who lost their important personal files, action against the unlawful seizure of those files must be taken. Many have spoken out regarding the shutdown of Megaupload and many P2P file sharing sites such as Filesonic, Fileserve, FileJungle, UploadStation, 4shared, VideoBB, VideoZer, UploadBox, and Uploaded.to have shutdown their services to the U.S. As I stated above, regardless of the shutdowns, people will continue to use P2P file sharing sites and they will collectively rise up to keep the sites around. See Also: 10 Alternatives to LimeWire Jon@zeropaid.com | @jkaykin

Artists Sue CBS, CNET for Profiting from Distribution of P2P Software

Jared Moya — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 15:45:04 +0000

More than a hundred artists, writers and producers join FilmOn founder Alki David to re-file lawsuit against CBS Interactive and CNET for distributing a "vast array" of P2P programs used "primarily" for copyright infringement, and providing "detailed reviews" that discussed the "suitability" of those programs for infringement as well as instructions for how to use them to infringe.

FilmOn founder Alki David is back at it again, refiling a lawsuit against CBS Interactive and CNET alleging that the two profited from the piracy of copyright music by the artists that have signed on. They allege that "millions and potentially billions of dollars in revenues" have been earned over the years by "fostering and popularizing piracy of copyrighted works." “CBS Interactive has quietly made billions by inducing the public to break the law, by providing them the file-sharing software and step-by-step guides, on exactly how to do it," said Baker Marquart LLP, the law firm representing Alki David and the Justice for Artists Coalition. "No one has held Defendant accountable for this. Until now.” The Justice for Artists Coalition is comprised of over a hundred Artists, writers and producers representing over a thousand copyrighted works. Some of teh artists include PM Dawn, Slick Rick, Ron Brows, Sugar Hill Music, and Luther Campbell. “PM Dawn, Slick Rick, Ron Brows, Sugar Hill Music, Luther Campbell aka Luke Skywalker, Pretty Ricky, Dough E Fresh, H-Town and many others have joined the rapidly growing Coalition, said David. “We have only scratched the surface. Many more rights-holders are coming forward representing tens of thousands of more intellectual properties but the verification process for identifying ownership is long and detailed, so we will keep on adding as we go.” The lawsuit alleges that CBS Interactive and CNET "did more to further this massive infringement than Napster of LimeWire ever could by falsely legitimizing it and popularizing it to the masses." It argues that by having non-infringing licensed software available on the same site as software that is "clearly intended to be downloaded for infringing purposes" they gave users the false impression that the latter was as legitimate as the former. If that wasn't enough, they also provided detailed step-by-step instructions that showed visitors how to setup and use P2P software to ostensibly illegally download copyrighted material. “CBS Interactive is the Pirate Bay of Corporate America, have literally distributed Pirate Bay search and download tools and many others” continued Mr. David. The new lawsuit was refiled after an earlier failed effort that began in earnest last December. David began forming a class action lawsuit against CBS and CNET a month later, and eventually sued this past May. Unfortunately for David it was later amended to just 6 copyrighted works, none of which many had even heard of, and it was soon quietly dropped. With so many artists involved this time around things might be different. Stay tuned. jared@zeropaid.com Read the Complaint

Infringmnet Suit Against CNET, CBS Greatly Reduced

Jared Moya — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 16:15:21 +0000

FilmOn.com founder Alki David had claimed CBS and CNET had profited from illegal file-sharing software, and that it would "become the most significant copyright infringement lawsuit in history."

Things aren't looking good for FilmOn.com founder Alki David and his copyright infringment lawsuit against CBS Interactive Inc. and CNET Networks, Inc.. Early last month he and a coalition of music and film artists alleged in a lawsuit filed in a Los Angeles federal court that CBS and CNET have “direct participation in massive copyright infringement on P2P systems" thorugh their distribution of illegal LimeWire software. Last year District Judge Kimba Wood found that LimeWire had committed copyright infringement, engaged in unfair competition, and induced others to commit copyright infringement. “Illegal file sharing through LimeWire has caused enormous damage to everyone who is trying to make a living in the entertainment community,” said David. ”As more and more artists join this lawsuit, it will become the most significant copyright infringement lawsuit in history." Unfortunately for David that claim won't be coming true. The lawsuit has been pared down to a meager 6 copyrighted works, none of which ought to sound familiar to the general public. They include:

1. Fishtales 2. She a Star 3. Run Da Yard 4. Topless 5. Tipsy In Dis Club 6. Sex Drive

CBS told Wired.com, which reported news of the filing, that it is “confident that we will prevail” in the lawsuit. Even if it doesn't it faces a more modest $900,000 or so in damages, not nearly enough to "become the most significant copyright infringement lawsuit in history." Stay tuned. jared@zeropaid.com

Record Labels Claim Artists Will Get Cut of LimeWire Settlement

Jared Moya — Thu, 19 May 2011 22:44:46 +0000

Three of the four major labels said some of the $105 million settlement will be shared with artists, but after the RIAA deducts the cost of 5 years of litigation artists are likely to see little, if any of that money.

Almost immediately after last week's announcement by the RIAA and LimeWire that the two had agreed to an out-of-court $105 million settlement to finally bring to the copyright infringement case, questions arose about how the money would be divvied up. The RIAA won its infringement case last May when US District Judge Kimba Wood found that Limewire and its creator, Mark Gorton, had both committed copyright infringement, engaged in unfair competition, and induced others to commit copyright infringement. Throughout the trial the RIAA repeatedly reminded the court of the harm it had caused artists, and so it would seem natural that they would share in any settlement money to make up for the damages done, but that may never happen. "The RIAA has made no comment on how the recoveries in the LimeWire case would be distributed," the RIAA's Senior Vice President of Communications , Jonathan Lamy, told Hypebot. "That is a decision for the individual plaintiffs. However, the record companies have historically shared large litigation recoveries such as the KaZaa settlement with their artists." When asked if they would share the $105 million with artists three of the four major labels said "yes." “We will share the settlement money with our artists," said a Warner Music Group spokesperson. Now Lamy claims record labels shared the settlement they received from KaZaA, Grokster, Napster, and others, but Bob Donnelly, a longtime lawyer for artists told the NY Times that he doesn't "remember any of my artists’ accountants ever saying, ‘Hey, guess what, we got a great bonus this month’.” In fact, three years ago artists were still looking for a cut from settlement money seven years after the Napster case was settled, and two years after KaZaA "Artist managers and lawyers have been wondering for months when their artists will see money from the copyright settlements and how it will be accounted for," said lawyer John Branca, who has represented Korn, Don Henley, and The Rolling Stones, among others, at the time. EMI, Warner Music, and Universal Music, all said they were already sharing or in the process of sharing the settlement money, but artists saw little, if anything at all. "The record labels are experts at transferring money around and putting the onus on artists managers to find it," added Branca. A more likely scenario is that the RIAA will do as it usually does and deduct the cost of litigation - 5yrs involving probably dozens of lawyers - and divide the remainder among labels who will in turn pass it on to artists. The reality is that a majority of artists won't see a dime from the settlement, and only the artists responsible for sizable sales will see a cut. In the end the only ones that'll really be compensated are lawyers and a handful of big name artists. Stay tuned. jared@zeropaid.com

LimeWire Settles RIAA Suit for $105 Million

Jared Moya — Fri, 13 May 2011 01:08:13 +0000

Settlement is well short of the billions, and at one time trillions, that the RIAA had sought from the shuttered file-sharing program.

The RIAA and LimeWire Inc. have announced that the two have agreed to an out-of-court $105 million settlment that finally brings an end to a case that first began way back in 2006. "We are pleased to have reached a large monetary settlement following the court’s finding that both LimeWire and its founder Mark Gorton personally liable for copyright infringement," said RIAA Chairman and CEO Mitch Bainwol. "As the court heard during the last two weeks, LimeWire wreaked enormous damage on the music community, helping contribute to thousands of lost jobs and fewer opportunities for aspiring artists." The RIAA won its infringement case last May when US District Judge Kimba Wood found that Limewire and its creator, Mark Gorton, had both committed copyright infringement, engaged in unfair competition, and induced others to commit copyright infringement. At one point the RIAA claimed the two owed it billions, and perhaps trillions of dollars in damages based on the fact that it should receive the maximum damages possible for every single infringement that occurred over the life of LimeWire. Judge Wood later dismissed this as an “absurdity” since it would, in his words, constitute “more money than the entire music recording industry has made since Edison’s invention of the phonograph in 1877.” ""The significant settlement underscores the Supreme Court’s unanimous ruling in the Grokster case -- designing and operating services to profit from the theft of the world’s greatest music comes with a stiff price," added Bainwol. "The resolution of this case is another milestone in the continuing evolution of online music to a legitimate marketplace that appropriately rewards creators. This hard fought victory is reason for celebration by the entire music community, its fans and the legal services that play by the rules." The sad fact is that the only milestone it represented was a shift to P2P alternatives like Frostwire and BitTorrent. According to The NPD Group, the North American market research company, Limewire accounted for 56% of P2P usage for downloading music before its closure last Fall, but that since then alternatives like Frostwire and BitTorrent have seen increased usage. Frostwire usage increased from just 10% before LimeWire was shuttered to nearly 21% afterwards. Usage of the BitTorrent client u-Torrent increased from 8% to 12% during the same period. The RIAA gets $105 million and LimeWire closed down for good, but at what cost? It likely spent at least this much to drag this case through the couts over the last 5 years, money which could've been better spent developing a viable "legitimate marketplace" of its own. Oh, and then there's the pesky little detail like the fact that LimeWire still lives on in the form of the LimeWire Pirate Edition. So again, what did the RIAA really gain in the end? Stay tuned. jared@zeropaid.com

CBS, CNET Sued for Infringement Tied to LimeWire Distribution

Jared Moya — Thu, 05 May 2011 08:00:10 +0000

FilmOn.com founder Alki David and a coalition of music and film artists allege that CBS Interactive Inc. and CNET Networks, Inc. have been a "major source" for LimeWire and other P2P applications, and that they are therefore liable for the "massive copyright infringement" these applications are responsible for.

FilmOn.com founder Alki David is leading a coalition of music and film artists in a class action lawsuit against CBS Interactive Inc. and CNET Networks, Inc. for mass-scale copyright infringement. The suit, filed in a Los Angeles federal court, alleges the two have "direct participation in massive copyright infringement on P2P systems," the primary being the now defunct LimeWire. It notes that last year District Judge Kimba Wood found that LimeWire had committed copyright infringement, engaged in unfair competition, and induced others to commit copyright infringement. An injunction was then issued against the P2P program last October, and it faces liability for billions of dollars in damages. David argues that CBS Interactive and CNET have acted as the "main distributor" of LimeWire and have even "promoted this and other P2P systems to profit from wide-scale copyright infringement." David first made the allegations last December, and then announced the formation of a class action lawsuit earlier this year. “There is nothing illegal about file-sharing software,” said at the time, ” but distributing it with the malicious intent to infringe on copyright is.” He also showed video clips showing several CNET, and therefore “paid employees of CBS,” advocating the use of illegal DRM-circumvention software. The suit says that CBS and CNET have been a "major source" for LimeWire and other P2P applications like FrostWire, and that they therefore are liable for the infringement theses applications are responsible for. "Illegal file sharing through LimeWire has caused enormous damage to everyone who is trying to make a living in the entertainment community," says David. "As more and more artists join this lawsuit, it will become the most significant copyright infringement lawsuit in history. My ultimate hope is that this lawsuit will ensure that huge corporations like CBS Interactive and CNET do not profit from these wrongful activities at the expense of hard-working artists." David names half-dozen artists that are currently part of the suit, and says that he expects more to join as the trial proceeds. He says he believes that "ultimately will become one of the most significant copyright precedents to protect artists' rights." What do you think? Does the suit stand a chance?My only concern is that sites like this - ZeroPaid - could also be tied up with litigation for distribution P2P software. Stay tuned. jared@zeropaid.com ________________

LimeWire Judge Rules Prior P2P Judgments Count Toward Damages

Jared Moya — Fri, 08 Apr 2011 17:51:02 +0000

US District Court Judge Kimba Wood rules the RIAA can still seek statutory damages in regards to the 104 copyrighted works for which it has already been awarded statutory damages, but the amount will be taken into account once the statutory damages against LimeWire are determined.

The RIAA's case against LimeWire took another interesting turn the other day when US District Judge Kimba Wood denied LimeWire's request to have 104 copyrighted songs for which the RIAA has won statutory damages from individual file-sharers removed from the list for which the RIAA is seeking statutory damages against LimeWire. LimeWire argued that the RIAA has already obtained 16 default judgments for statutory damages against 16 individual file-sharers for 104 of the 9,715 copyrighted songs involved in the case, and that therefore they should be removed from consideration. Judge Wood disagreed, ruling that the Copyright Act allows copyright holders to seek statutory damages from recover “for all infringements involved in the action, with respect to any one work, for which any one infringer is liable individually, or for which any two or more infringers are liable jointly and severally." She found that Section 504 does not limit copyright holders to a single statutory damage for each copyrighted work, rather it allows for statutory damages against all parties that may have been involved in the infringement. Judge Wood does, however find that the statutory damages awarded in the cases of the 16 file-sharers - $80,250 (of which $47,927 has been recovered) - will be taken into account when the statutory damages against LimeWire are determined. "This Court has held that Plaintiffs are entitled to a single statutory damage award from Defendants with respect to each “work” infringed, regardless of the number of direct infringers who may have infringed that particular work on the LimeWire system," she writes. "The Court’s holding was based, in part, on the fact that the dollar amount of each statutory damage award that Plaintiffs ultimately receive for any given work may already account for the number of direct infringers Defendants induced to infringe that particular work. Similarly, with respect to those 104 works for which Plaintiffs have recovered a statutory damage award from a direct infringer, it will be permissible for the fact-finder to consider that Plaintiffs have already recovered from a direct infringer for some portion of the infringement that Defendants induced, because Defendants are jointly and severally liable with those direct infringers." LimeWire was found guilty of copyright infringement last May, and the case has been edging towards a May 2nd court date in which the damages portion of the trial will begin. The RIAA has claimed LimeWire is liable for trillions of dollars in damages, that it should have to pay statutory damages for each time a person illegally downloaded a copyrighted song, Judge Wood has called the claim an "absurdity," ruling that the amount would constitute “more money than the entire music recording industry has made since Edison’s invention of the phonograph in 1877.” In the meantime a modified version of LimeWire called LimeWire Pirate Edition has rendered the entire lawsuit meaningless. Stay tuned. jared@zeropaid.com

Judge to RIAA: LimeWire Liable for Billions Not Trillions

Jared Moya — Fri, 11 Mar 2011 12:54:42 +0000

US District Court Judge Kimba Wood rejects RIAA's claim that LimeWire should have to pay statutory damages for each time a person illegally downloaded a copyrighted song. Calls the notion of trillions of dollars in damages an "absurdity" since it would constitute “more money than the entire music recording industry has made since Edison’s invention of the phonograph in 1877.”

As the damages portion of the LimeWire trial nears the RIAA has been trying to establish just how much the once popular file-sharing service should be held liable for. Last June, in the wake of its loss to the RIAA for copyright infringement claims on a "massive scale," it submitted a brief to Judge Wood contending that it "will be entitled to substantial damages, totaling hundreds of millions of dollars, or even billions, because of the massive infringing conduct for which these Defendants are liable." With the damages portion of that trial scheduled for May 2nd, US District Court Judge Kimba Wood has been asked by the RIAA to settle a "threshold dispute" in regards to whether the RIAA is entitled to damages per each individual infringement of a copyrighted work, or rather should it receive one statutory damage award per each work regardless of the number of infringements. She has decided on the latter because the former would result in a judgment in the trillions of dollars, an amount that would constitute “more money than the entire music recording industry has made since Edison’s invention of the phonograph in 1877.” "The absurdity of this result is one of the factors that has motivated other courts to reject Plaintiffs’ damages theory," observes Judge Wood. She says this is the "most plausible interpretation" of Section 504(c) of US Copyright Law, "particularly in the context of the mass infringement found in the context of online peer-to-peer file sharing." "Accordingly, the Court holds that Plaintiffs are entitled to a single statutory damage award from Defendants per work infringed, regardless of how many individual users directly infringed that particular work," writes Judge Wood. This now means that the RIAA will find itself in the predicament of trying to determine just how many direct infringers there were per copyrighted work. Being that LimeWire was a direct connect-style P2P platform, trying to verify the actual number of total downloads ought to be quite tough, and we know how much the RIAA loves to make up numbers. Stay tuned. jared@zeropaid.com

LimeWire Settles Music Publishers Case, Still Faces Labels

Jared Moya — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 13:05:39 +0000

Both parties agree to end the infringement case brought by the National Music Publishers’ Association in the wake of LimeWire's loss to the RIAA last year. LimeWire still faces RIAA claims of "hundreds of millions of dollars, or even billions” in damages.

LimeWire and the National Music Publishers’ Association (NMPA), the largest music publishing trade association in the US, have reached a settlement in the infringement case brought by the NMPA last year. Last June the NMPA filed suit against LimeWire because it felt that its interested weren't properly represented in the RIAA's case against the file-sharing service. It wanted “equitable relief” of its own for the damages it claims its members suffered over the years. According to Reuters, that case was settled out of court few days "A settlement was reached," said a spokeswoman for the NMPA. "The parties worked hard to achieve a settlement that is a good result for all involved." The NMPA had hoped for a quick and effortless victory, especially since record labels had secured a win against LimeWire just a month prior, but LimeWire put up a fight by demanding that the NMPA provide documentation proving their ownership of the copyrighted works involved in the case. LimeWire had countered that many of the works cited in their suit “are in the public domain and therefore not protected.” With LimeWire putting up a tough fight in the damages phase of the RIAA trial it was likely decided to focus the music industry's efforts on that case alone. This past January it subpoenaed internal documents from third-party licensees which it claims could show the “true value of their works,” and therefore how much it should actually be forced to pay in damages and not merely what the RIAA claims. The jury trial for that case is scheduled to begin May 2nd, and the RIAA believes that it “will be entitled to substantial damages, totaling hundreds of millions of dollars, or even billions” because of LimeWire's “massive infringing conduct." Stay tuned. jared@zeropaid.com