A Federal judge has approved a settlement in a case against several record companies for price gouging. Sony Music Entertainment, EMI Music Distribution, Warner-Elektra-Atlantic Corp., Universal Music Group and Bertelsmann Music Group, plus a couple of retailers, settled the suit without admitting fault. The same judge had earlier approved a $143 million settlement in a related lawsuit that found these companies conspired to fix music prices! And the RIAA wants me to believe that the recording industry is an innocent victim of crime? After their members colluded to fix prices? HA!
I haven't been able to find out the amount of this settlement. But I bet I know how they intend to pay for it!
The RIAA has just unleashed their latest wave of lawsuits, including an elderly couple who don't even own or operate a computer. (Their son-in-law added internet access to their cable bill while living with them to avoid a surcharge for another bill to the same address.) The RIAA has settled with about 220 users, at about $5000 each (on average by my math), for a total of $110,000. Anything to keep that cash stream flowing, I guess.
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