Short Take: Napster averts piracy black eye

Napster and pop-punk band The Offspring have settled what threatened to be an embarrassing disagreement over "pirated" T-shirts and other Napster products. The musicians had offered unauthorized Napster merchandise for sale on their Web site, putting the software company--itself under fire for allowing widespread music piracy--in the awkward position of objecting to someone else's theft. But today the company and the band agreed to market the products jointly, removing the need for Napster to complain.