From the New York Times:
In the latest salvo in the recording industry's battle against online piracy, a trade group today sued 261 people in the United States it accuses of violating copyright laws by swapping online files.
The lawsuits were filed in federal courts throughout the country and could be followed by thousands more such complaints in the coming months. . . .
The recording industry blames the practice for a 25 percent drop in sales of CD's since 1999. Under copyright law, the group can be awarded damages of $750 to $150,000 for each copyrighted song that is distributed without authorization.
Read the article here.