Court Shuts Down LimeWire

LimeWire, the popular decade-old peer-to-peer network, was shut down yesterday after losing its legal battle against the RIAA, Wired reports.

A federal judge found that 93 percent of the traffic on Limewire, which drew 50 million users a month, involved the transfer of unauthorized copyright material. Under the judge's orders, LimeWire ceased all "searching, downloading, uploading [and] file trading."

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The decision marks the first time legal action has been taken against a peer-to-peer software provider since the United States Supreme Court ruled in 2005 that file-sharing companies could be sued for distributing copyright-infringing materials. RIAA filed their lawsuit against LimeWire in 2006.

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"As of today, we are required to stop distribution and support of LimeWire's P2P file-sharing service as a result of a court-ordered injunction," LimeWire CEO George Searle wrote yesterday on the company"s website. "Naturally, we're disappointed with this turn of events. We are extremely proud of our pioneering history and have, for years, worked hard to bridge the gap between technology and content rights holders. However, at this time, we have no option but to cease further distribution and support of our software. It's a sad occasion for our team, and for you — the hundreds of millions of people who have used LimeWire to discover new things."

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Song Stories

“I'm Yours”

Jason Mraz | 2008

Jason Mraz re-emerged after his disappointing second album with this lead single, a Jack Johnson-esque ditty about giving yourself fully to someone else. The success of the reggae-tinged song (it earned two Grammy nods and a spot on the Billboard singles chart for well over a year) was something the folk-pop singer never predicted when he wrote it in 15 minutes at home. "I played a happy-hippie chord progression that would probably work without 50 different Bob Marley songs," he told Rolling Stone. "I thought, 'It's too novelty. This is a nursery rhyme,'" concluding that "you can never guess what's gonna be a hit."

More Song Stories entries »

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