FYI: Allofmp3.com to be shut down...

As many of you know, the legality of allofmp3.com has been long debated. While they claimed to have the permission of the Russian Multimedia and Internet Society to sell the unprotected (DRM-free) music, they NEVER had the permission of the copyright holders of most of the music they offered and the copyright holders were NEVER compensated. Most recently they had been sued by the British Recording Industry, declared illegal in Germany and Italy, and investigated by the Russian government.

Today, however, the death knoll sounded for allofmp3.com. After months of talks with the United States, the Russian government has finally agreed to crack down on piracy in Russia in hopes of joining the World Trade Organization. Specifically, they will begin shutting down all sites that operate from within Russia that offer music (be it free or at a charge) without the permission/authorization or the copyright holder. The new laws have been ordered to go into effect by the deadline of June 1, 2007.

The Russian government listed allofmp3.com as a prime example of piracy in Russia and has stated that it will be one of numerous sites shut down in the coming months. MediaServices Inc. has responded stating that "AllofMP3 will alter its business model to fit within the new parameters." It is not known how or when they plan to legitimize their business, but unless they make an immediate turn around, removing ALL infringing content (almost all of what they offer), they will soon be going lights.

John