Word: napstering
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...There'll be Friday's hearings, in which Napster and Big Music go over their cases one more time. Patel may issue her revised injunction directly from the bench, and it's widely expected to be nasty, brutish and short for the Napsterians. Then, assuming Patel rules as expected, the music companies must present Napster with a list of all the songs they want removed - that could take a couple of days. And Patel herself has scheduled a mediation session between the two sides, set for Wednesday...
...Anybody else think Napster just might have a March surprise planned? The site has already announced plans to transform itself into a pay-for-play service in July. Yet in the months since it scored a big cash investment from erstwhile litigant BMG (courtesy of parent Bertelsmann) it's been mummer than mum about how the project is actually progressing...
...keep the site in the headlines and the users flocking to the service to get in a few more downloads before the free music stops. Now the site is up to 64 million registered users - about a fourth of the U.S. population, to put it in perspective. And Napster knows that not too many of them will be sticking around for the strictly legal New Artist Program...
...those users float away like partygoers when the beer runs out. The deadbeats and moochers, of course, will leave anyway, and there are plenty of alternatives (albeit not so user-friendly) out there. But a sizable portion of those 64 million really read Playboy for the articles - er, use Napster for the selection and convenience - and will stick around because deep down, they'll feel better if they kick in a few bucks for the privilege of access to the world's largest record store...
...already voted with its checkbook; the other four major labels may see this as the last best time to join in, now that Napster is at its peak of popularity and staring at the business end of a judge's gavel. Once those users scatter, they won't be back - but they won't be back in record stores either...