German police charge 3,500 in latest major crackdown on P2P

When the RIAA files a round of lawsuits, usually it is common to hear up to around 1,000 individuals being targeted for unauthorised file sharing across the US.  Well, just when consumers in European countries through they were in a safer position, the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) announced that 3,500 individuals in Germany alone have been charged by Police for illegal distribution of copyrighted music online in their single largest ever crackdown. 

Those targeted were users who distributed a large amount of music via eDonkey P2P (which eMule also runs on), with some sharing as many as 8,000 files.  According to the IFPI, they claim that over 400 million songs were illegally downloaded in Germany alone throughout 2005.  So far, the German recording industry has targeted over 7,000 users with legal action over the past three years, with a couple of hundred settlements made so far, averaging at around €2,500 in damages.  Those currently sued in their latest round face up to five years jail time. 

However, the IFPI mentioned that they are currently targeting the large uploaders as so far no users who strictly download music have been hit with any legal action.  Thanks to Siswell for letting us know about the following news: 

With the rate at which the German music industry is targeting individuals, it actually makes the RIAA's figures look tiny when one looks at the size of the US versus Germany and the quantity of suits filed by both industries.  On the other hand, it clearly shows that those who share large quantities of music in Germany have a much greater risk of being caught.

Siswell added:  Well there goes eMule; which new P2P (enctryped?) are you moving to this time?

Source: BBC News - Entertainment