First U.S. convictions over 'peer to peer'

[Kooperman]

Two men plead guilty in copyright case

First U.S. convictions over 'peer to peer' file swapping

Updated: 1:34 p.m. ET Jan. 19, 2005WASHINGTON -

Two men have pleaded guilty to copyright-infringement for distributing music, software and movies over the Internet in the first U.S. convictions for piracy over “peer to peer” networks, the Justice Department said.

William Trowbridge, 50, of Johnson City, New York, and Michael Chicoine, 47, of San Antonio, face up to five years in prison and a fine of $250,000 in the criminal convictions stemming from an August raid, the department said late Tuesday.

Trowbridge and Chicoine operated hubs in a file-sharing network that required members to share between one gigabyte and 100 gigabytes of material, the equivalent of 250,000 songs, Attorney General John Ashcroft said when the raid was announced.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6843995/

[Shawn]

Trowbridge and Chicoine each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit felony copyright infringement. They also pleaded guilty to acting for commercial advantage, Justice said.

I wonder about that paragraph. Despite the news agency's tag-line, I'd hate to think that was the state of things in the States. Still not a major precedent except for hub owners, but shit...

When I have more time I've find the actual judgment and see what they say.