Christine Chang says she'd pay to use Napster.
| Christine Chang says she'd pay to use Napster. |
Internet users are making beautiful music together. Well, really, they swap music online using Napster, a website and service created last year. But outrage in the music industry is changing the tune. Napster's opponents said giving music away without an artist's permission is stealing. Five music companies filed a lawsuit to stop the swapping.
Last week Napster teamed up with music and publishing giant Bertelsmann, one of the companies that had sued. The two are working on a deal to make Napster users pay a fee to download certain songs. That way, musicians and their record companies could make money when songs are shared by Napster users.
"It's a step in the right direction," says Howard King, a lawyer who represents anti-Napster musicians Dr. Dre and Metallica.
While many Napster fans are upset, others say it's only fair to pay up. Getting songs free, says Christine Chang, 21, is "taking away from artists."