Reducing Digital Copyright Infringement Without Restricting Innovation‪.‬

INTRODUCTION Suing actual infringers is becoming passe in digital copyright law. In the digital environment, the real stakes so far have been in suing those who facilitate infringement by others. Copyright owners tend not to sue those who trade software, video, or music files over the Internet. Indeed, such claims are so rare that the Recording Industry Association of America's (RIAA) recent suits against some actual infringers on peer-to-peer (p2p) networks sent shock waves through the legal community. Instead, copyright owners have mostly sued direct facilitators like Napster; (1) makers of software that can be used to share files; (2) those who provide tools to crack encryption that protects copyrighted works, (3) providers of search engines that help people find infringing material; (4) "quasi interact service providers" such as universities, (5) eBay, and Yahoo! Auction; (6) and even credit card companies that help individuals pay for infringing activity. (7)