Students Responsible for Napster Use

To the editors:

In her "Editorial Notebook" piece ("How Napster Opened My Eyes," Dec. 4), Lorrayne S. Ward praises Harvard for its refusal to ban Napster from the Harvard network, thus enabling her to expand her appreciation for diversity in music.

But students should understand that Harvard's decision reflects only the University's traditional reluctance to ban students' access to any book, music, art, or other source of knowledge. It is not meant as an assurance to students that downloading music via Napster is beneficial, harmless, or legal.

Students should also be aware that a 1998 federal law could require Harvard to terminate the network access of students or other users who repeatedly infringe the copyrights of others, including musicians and record companies. The recording industry has sued Napster, alleging that those who use it are doing just that. There is as yet no final judgment in that case, but another federal court has ruled that MP3.com has violated federal law by enabling users to download copyrighted music. No one should be surprised if the recording industry persuades a court that Napster is liable under the same standard.

Any legal restriction on a student's access to the Harvard network would be a serious problem. Harvard cannot insulate its students from the consequences of copyright infringement, and students should understand that they proceed at their own risk when they download copyrighted music.

Allan A. Ryan, Jr.

Dec. 12, 2000

The writer is an attorney in the Office of the General Counsel.