Napster asks fans to join D.C. caravan
The company is bringing its message to Washington, D.C., scheduling a 1960s-like "teach-in" and free concert to accompany a planned congressional hearing on online copyright issues.
As it has fared increasingly poorly in courts, the file-swapping company is hoping policy-makers will listen to the complaints of outraged music-traders and help reverse its fortunes. Napster is pushing for its members to go to Washington on April 3 and show their support for the company's actions.
The request is the latest in a series of escalating appeals from Napster to its fans to take political action. For example, the company has set up a toll-free number that people can use to call Congress to register their support for file swapping.
For the past few months, the company also has been touting a "Napster Action Network," soliciting the help of people to e-mail friends or even "form or manage a local Napster advocacy chapter."
None of these attempts at grassroots organization has yet to affect the company's legal outlook, however.
The past two weeks have seen Napster and the record industry spar over the implementation of a court order designed to pull as much copyrighted material as possible off Napster's network. The Recording Industry Association of America says Napster's filtering techniques aren't doing enough, while Napster says the record companies aren't giving the company good data on what to filter.