The Recording Industry Association of America continued to crack down on music piracy Wednesday, sending out another 413 pre-litigation settlement letters to college-aged downloaders across the country.
The letters were sent to 21 universities, but there were no letters sent to UW-Madison. The university has taken a stance on messages of its kind.
Schools in the UW System have refused to comply with the RIAA by not forwarding such letters to students. The Division of Information Technology at UW-Madison has previously stated that it sees the letters as not legally binding.
Steven Marks, Executive Vice-President of the RIAA, said in a release the RIAA hopes the settlement letters make students consider alternatives to downloading illegally.
""Why take the twin risks of exposing your computer to viruses or spyware by downloading from an illegal site or exposing yourself to a costly lawsuit?"" Marks asked in the release.
Despite not complying with the letters, students at UW-Madison can still be disciplined by the university for downloading illegally.
UW-Madison sophomore Jessica Megna said she accidentally downloaded a song while on the UW network and was promptly e-mailed by administrators to delete it. She also said if she did not delete the song she could have certain computer privileges revoked.
—Charles Brace
