Court speeds file-swapping appeal

A Los Angeles federal court has put the record and movie industry's appeal of April's surprise file-swapping decision on the fast track. The move means that the appeal of the lower court's ruling, which said that file-swapping software like Grokster and Morpheus is legal, could be heard by the end of the year. Briefs for the record labels and movies studios are due August 18, with reply briefs for the file-swapping companies due on Sept. 17.