While most people have vaguely innocent intentions when using filesharing programs, there are some who give groups like the RIAA fodders for their war against filesharing.

Shamed vicar Paul Battersby is one such person. Rather than using filesharing programs to download Christian rock music, he used the software to download illegal porn images. It’s frustrating that filesharing can be used to download pictures of children because it gives sickos like Battersby a chance to really mess things up for the rest of us.

Filesharing is already pretty close to being stamped out in the UK. What we want is for people to be able to use filesharing freely to get music. Something must be done to stop obscene content making its way onto filesharing networks, particularly as it is possible for innocent people to unwittingly download such material and then find themselves the subject of a criminal investigation.

In a landmark ruling that has sent ripples through the Asian filesharing community, Japanese ISPs have agreed to a three-strikes-and-your-out policy to rid the Internet of filesharing altogether.

Persistent filesharers keen to get free music downloads will be disconnected from the Internet after their third offense. A lot of Japanese people use filesharing program WinNY, so you can be sure there will be heaps of unhappy surfers in Japan.

ISPs will be alerted of the IPs of users who are getting dodgy music downloads. Persistent warnings will result in the plug being pulled on Internet connections.

Japan now joins Britain and France in similar moves to outlaw filesharing. Sweden looks set to impose such regulations as well.

It’s anyone’s guess which countries will be next to follow suit in the global battle against filesharing. If this trend continues, MTV will have to look elsewhere to get ideas for their programming.

A man was jailed for four years for using filesharing program Limewire to steal other people’s identities. Gregory Kopiloff had previously pleaded guilty to using filesharing software to access other people’s computers without their permission.

In the past, people have been sentenced for using filesharing networks to obtain and share copyrighted material, but this is the first time someone has been convicted of identity theft. It raises many questions for the millions of users of Limewire.

Seattle resident Kopiloff would use the filesharing software to get hold of financial documents. Many Internet users were unaware that they even had Limewire or any filesharing software on their computers.

Kopiloff got four years and three months in jail for his filesharing crime. He had apparently turned to this sophisticated method of identity theft to fund his drug and gambling habits.

It’s great news that something like this can be dealt with in a court of law, but with most filesharers breaking the law as it is, it’s a bittersweet victory.

Filesharing in Sweden is once again under scrutiny this week with news of the Swedish government putting pressure on ISPs. Apparently, Swedish Culture & Justice ministers are on the verge of giving sufficient power to courts to allow them to force ISPs to hand over details of subscribers IP addresses.

What this means is that people caught filesharing or getting illegal music downloads in Sweden can be traced and then taken to court. It’s another Big Brother move that will put enormous pressure on ISPs, whose entire business is based on giving people the chance to do more or less what they want on the Internet.

Continual pressure from anti-filesharing bodies in the US may mean that this gets approval in Sweden, the former home of Pirate Bay. With Britain and France following the US crackdown on filesharing and Australia looking to join in the fun, it looks like the developed world has a full-scale filesharing battle going on

MySpace is apparently close to a deal with Sony BMG, Warner Music and EMI to offer legal music downloads. The service could be operational later this year if all goes well.

MySpace users could soon have legal music downloads — and with the millions of MySpacer around the world, this could be huge business. Universal isn’t likely to get on board because of a copyright dispute it has with MySpace.

Deals with the other three labels could be inked by the end of this month with the music download service to follow shortly.

Record labels will receive a percentage from ads and users will and the songs will be uploaded to the website by users of imeem. Facebook is yet to make a move into legal music downloads, but one feels that it’s only a matter of time now. Social networking is big business and with millions of users already signed up and keen to get free music downloads, it’s a surprise that this hasn’t been done sooner.

Like free music downloads? Don’t like infringing on copyright? Then head over the We7: Peter Gabriel’s ad-supported online music downloads store has earned the support of Sony BMG meaning its entire back catalogue will soon be available for free. This announcement by We7 and Sony is fantastic news for music lovers and absolutely terrifying news for much of the rest of the industry.

Interestingly a parallel announcement by 24-7 Entertainment sees them preparing to launch unlimited mobile music downloads for a Nordic provider, as well as being in talks with a number of phone providers from the UK.

O2 is also getting on the act by partnering with the daddy of music downloads, Napster. Napster are currently in talks with giant Vodafone, meaning the likelihood of some solid deal coming out of Napster’s camp are increasing.

What will happen to CD sales? Will this rush of free music affect online sales of music tracks? Who knows? Keep tuned, dear reader.

Big news about music downloads this week. Rumors have surfaced once again of iTunes offering a subscription-based service that would allow users to get unlimited music downloads for a fee. The FT has reported that Apple is in talks with major record labels to make this dream a reality.

The new business model would give buyers of new iPods and iPhones unlimited music downloads for the entire life of their device. When you buy an iPod or iPhone, you will have the option of paying a one-time, premium fee to get the service.

It’s unclear at the moment how much this fee will be, but a lot of it rests on how much Apple is willing to pay record labels to cover the service. There’s no word yet on when, if ever, this service will be launched, but it will certainly shake up the world of music downloads if it happens.

Advances in computing technology mean greater power in ever shrinking sizes. Gone are the days of room-sized computers using punch cards to operate; welcome to the days when you can get a computer in your pocket. This juxtaposition of mobile technology and computing power – MobiCom – has been on the cards for a while. The MobiCom revolution is starting.
What does it mean to us, the consumer? It means that we can keep working on the move, all the time. Your iphone will now perform most, if not all, the tasks that you would normally use your computer for. While productive word processing is hampered somewhat by the size of the mobile technology (which, ironically, is it biggest selling point) most other functions can be carried out quite adequately on the train. Whether this is a good thing or not remains to be seen!
What is clear is that this is a trend and we’ve not yet hit the apex. The utility of MobiCom devices is such that labeling it a ‘fad’ is drastically unfair and inaccurate; if you’re not caught up in the MobiCom revolution then you are being left behind. iPhone has indefensibly created a awareness that is only growing.

An ISP in Ireland has come under fire after four major record labels took out a High court injunction in a bid to crack down on illegal free music downloads. Eircom is accused of allowing its networks to become a haven for the music downloads.

This is first time in Ireland that an ISP has been taken to court, rather than an actual Internet user. Eircom is Ireland’s largest ISP.

The Irish music industry (yes, they do have) is said to be suffering at the hands of illegal music downloads with a 50-million-euro decline in sales since 2001, which has, of course, been attributed to filesharing, illegal music downloads — the usual suspects.

Eircom has steadfastly refused to filter filesharing programs and suchlike, although this may all be about to change. There are now calls for Eircom to monitor and restrict all dodgy Internet activity, which could see a cutback in access to filesharing and music download websites.

Bored of your iPhone, your iPod or your iPod touch? Shame on you! These are all fantastic pieces of kit that simply need a little bit of jazzing up every now and again. Sometimes this refreshing process (which is entirely for your benefit, and not a technical thing!) is as simple as adding a new movie or some new music to it. Think about iPhone downloads: you can get whatever you want, whenever you want it. If there’s a more perfect solution to ‘bored of the iGadget’ blues then I’d like to hear of it.

What happens when you’re bored of all your music? Need some more? Then iPhone downloads are the answer! Fancy playing a few games? Bored of the ones you’ve got. Again: iPhone downloads are your savior.

There are many ways to get your favorite iPhone downloads, but the best way to get anything on your gadget is the humble search engine. Go for it!