In 1999 Shawn Fanning, an 18-year old college dropout, created a program that would allow him and his friends to share digital music files (MP3s) between each other. His program, named Napster, has sparked a historical debate about copyright law and the Internet. Napster is a free Internet music file-sharing program that allows users to quickly and easily swap files with one another directly, without the use of such a file server.
             This system of computers is called peer-to-peer networking. It is a simple idea that combines features of existing programs such as Internet relay chat, Windows file sharing, and music search engines. Napster is the fastest growing website in history. The Napster program is still in beta test (It's not finished in development) and has over 25 million users today. In February 2000, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) sued Napster and asked for them to shut down its file-sharing service, claiming that it facilitates theft and violates copyright laws. Therefor, the RIAA contends that Napster is responsible for contributory infringement of their copyrights. Contributory infringement is defined as where "a person, with knowledge of the infringing activity, induces, causes, or materially contributes to the infringing conduct of another."
             Many recording artists have also followed suit, including the heavy metal band, Metallica, who forced Napster to terminate the user accounts of individuals who downloaded their songs. Advancing technology, There the digital technology including the Internet, has spawned new challenges and debates related to copyright law, for both copyright owners and information users. It has significantly increased access to, and distribution of, information. The Copyright law originated with the Constitution. Copyrights protect property by giving owners exclusive rights but also limit these rights to provide for "fair use" of information by the ...