Traffic to filesharing sites drops

Facing the threat of lawsuits from a music industry trade group, fewer people are using online filesharing applications to swap songs, according to data released Monday.

Internet audience measurement service Nielsen Net Ratings said traffic on Kazaa, the leading filesharing platform, fell 15 percent in the week ended July 6 from the previous week.

It was during that prior week, on June 25, that the Recording Industry Association of America said it would track down the heaviest users of "peer-to-peer" services like Kazaa and sue them for damages of up to $150,000 per copyright violation.

Backing off

Traffic on the Morpheus service also fell 15 percent, Net Ratings said, while usage on iMesh dropped 16 percent. BearShare usage dropped enough that it fell below NetRatings' cutoff point for tracking.

"With the negative publicity and threat of steep fines, some surfers appear to be backing off," Greg Bloom, a senior analyst at NetRatings, said in a statement. "However, with millions of loyal users, these applications aren't likely to go offline in the near future."

Lobbying efforts underway

In the wake of the RIAA's announcement, some peer-to-peer services have established relationships with lobbyists and set up trade associations to persuade lawmakers and the entertainment industry that they are legitimate businesses.

A representative of Kazaa, at the forefront of those lobbying efforts, was not immediately available for comment.

Source: Reuters, Los Angeles