Swedish teen awaits verdict in online music
piracy trial
By SUSANNA LOOF
STOCKHOLM, Sweden (September 9, 1999 3:03 p.m. EDT http://www.nandotimes.com) -
A Swedish teenager is awaiting a verdict on charges of Internet music piracy in a case
that is the first of its kind in Europe, according to a recording industry lawyer. The
complaint against Tommy Olsson was brought by the Swedish branch of the International
Federation of the Phonographic Industry, which represents 53 record companies.
A hearing was held Wednesday at a court in Skoevde, about 175 miles southwest of
Stockholm, and a verdict is to be announced next Wednesday.
Olsson, 17, allegedly made copyright-protected recordings available for free via
a page he created on the World Wide Web.
Olsson's Web page posted links to files that contained recordings, including pop
hits such as Madonna's "Ray of Light." Anyone accessing the files could record
the music.
Olsson did not create the files, copy them or send them to others, "he just
spread information about where to find them," said his attorney Per Olof Almer.
The case is the first of its kind in Europe, said Magnus Maartensson, attorney
for Swedish IFPI, which over the past two years has moved against about 1,000 Swedish Web
pages in copyright cases.
Olsson's case is the first to reach the courts.
"This is not the entire record industry against a lone 17-year-old,"
said Maartensson. "If one person buys a single and posts it on the Internet, the
entire world can access it."
Olsson made only a few hundred dollars by posting ads on the page, Maartensson
said.
If Olsson is convicted, he'll likely face a fine of $150-$250.
That amount probably won't deter others, Maartensson said. "But if he's
convicted, we have the right to demand damages, and that will be a much larger
amount."
Copyright © 1999 Nando Media
Copyright © 1999 Associated Press
