• LA Times, Tuesday, November 8, 2005 1:30 PM

Grokster, the one-time file sharing network that ultimately lost a landmark case in the Supreme Court against it by Metro Goldwyn Meyer studios, is moving on to become a legitimate source of songs and movies now, signaling, perhaps, the end of an era when piracy was close to mainstream. Grokster's conversion settles a case which was more about the future of the entertainment industry than the right to not be held accountable for what other people use your product for (which was ultimately the only reason they used it in the first place). However, as the Los Angeles Times points out, the entertainment industry, which has enjoyed its victory, has a long way to go before it offers consumers a compelling reason for not moving on to the next illegal file sharing network that pops up. Former Grokster President Wayne Russo (now president of a new, legal file sharing service called Mashboxx) noted that Hollywood needs to act soon, or "a year from now this decision won't matter," especially as technology enhancements enable faster downloading. And analysts agree. Meanwhile, many illegal file-sharers have moved on to legal services like iTunes, while others have moved on to more difficult-to-prosecute file sharing services like BitTorrent.

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