(Associated Press via NewsEdge) One of the big guns of the Wild West days of freely downloading music and movies over the Internet is going straight.
Settling lawsuits around the world, the company behind the software called "Kazaa" said it would redesign its pioneering file-sharing program to block customers trying to find and download copyrighted music and movies. It would also offer licensed entertainment for a price, and it agreed to pay more than $115 million in penalties to leading music and movie companies.
The settlement ends one of the longest-running and fiercest copyright disputes of the Internet era, in which the entertainment industry spent millions suing Sharman Networks and the company's customers to end the illegal trade of its products.
Sharman Networks pledged to "use all reasonable means" to discourage online piracy, including building into new versions of its software "robust and secure" ways to frustrate computer users who try to find and download copyrighted music and movies, according to court papers.
Kazaa's popularity has declined dramatically in recent years amid concerns over "spyware" monitoring programs bundled with its freely distributed software and as new, more efficient downloading services, both legal and illegal, emerged.
The settlement included payment of $115 million to music companies and a lesser amount to the movie industry, said people familiar with those provisions. They agreed to speak on condition of anonymity because some provisions were included in secret agreements not disclosed in the public court papers.
Sharman Networks had already paid nearly all the money to the entertainment industry, these people said.
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