Part 1: New Battleground for Digital Music War

Oct. 3 -- Has Napster creator Shawn Fanning made intellectual property law hip?

It seems that nearly everyone in America, from pre-teens to baby boomers, suddenly has an opinion on the conflict between an artist’s right to control his work and society’s right to enjoy it.

Certainly, the digital revolution has raised hundreds of difficult questions for students of copyright law. But for the average American it boils down to whether he can, or should, download a cool song from Napster. And the major labels couldn't be happier.

Offspring Can’t Give Away Music If you’re like most Americans, you’ve probably given the Napster question some thought. And you’ve probably arrived at some conclusion on “the whole digital music thing.”

What you may not know, however, is that the big record labels have moved beyond Napster and other “file sharing” issues. In addition to going after people who illegally download songs, they’re now taking on their own customers, and sometimes even their artists.

Consider the case of the punk rock band Offspring. Two weeks ago, the group announced it would be making free MP3s of every song from its upcoming album, Conspiracy of One, available on its official Web site a month before the record’s release. Band members expressed their belief that free downloads actually helped album sales, something Napster representatives have been claiming for months.

The theory is that by giving away MP3s for free, bands are able to promote the CD, which even more people will then purchase. After all, very few people have portable MP3 players, and even fewer can listen to MP3s in their car. So once someone gets hooked on the download, he’ll decide to buy the CD.

The Offspring promotion looked like a way to test that theory. But just days after the announcement, Sony interceded. A showdown reportedly had both parties on the verge of filing lawsuits. Finally, Offspring backed off.