LimeWire

LimeWire is a file sharing program frequently commonly used for distributing music files as well as other files. The current version also has BitTorrent support built-in. A free version is available, but the developer, Lime Wire LLC, encourages users to purchase a paid version (currently $21.95). The paid version supports direct connections with up to 10 hosts of an identical searched file at any one time, whereas the free version is limited to a maximum of 8 hosts 1 .

Early versions of the free version of LimeWire were bundled with LimeShop, which was a variant of the TopMoxie 2 adware software. The bundling of the LimeShop adware/spyware was discontinued in LimeWire 3.9.4, which was released on April 20, 2004. Current versions no longer come bundled with adware/spyware.

The software is very popular for P2P file sharing and may occupy as much as 36% of systems that have P2P software installed 3

The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) 4 sued Lime Wire LLC on August 4, 2006 as part of its ongoing efforts to stop Peer-to-peer (P2P) distribution of music. Lime Wire countersued the RIAA on September 25, 2006 5.

The claims Lime Wire LLC made against the RIAA in its countersuit included the following 6:

  1. Hacking and exploring files of Lime Wire software users
  2. Falsely claiming that Lime Wire "promotes child pornography" and is a "pirate" and "smut peddler"
  3. Threatening users of P2P software with litigation, based upon information obtained by illegal means
  4. Pressuring artists not to license their works to providers of P2P software that were not controlled or owned by the music labels

Unfortunately, for Lime Wire LLC, the judge hearing the cast threw out most of the company's claims with prejudice on December 3, 2007, meaning they cannot be brought again, though the judge noted that several claims could be filed instead in state court6.

On August 14, 2007, LimeWire announced it would sell music files unencumbered by Digital Rights Management (DRM) as 256 Kbs MP3 7 files through its own online store 8. But, as of today, December 30, 2007, that store is still not operational.

References:

  1. LimeWire
    Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
  2. TopMoxie
    Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
  3. $40K to fill an iPod? One third of PCs use LimeWire instead (Updated)
    By Jon Stokes
    Published: December 27, 2007
    Ars Technica
  4. Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA)
    Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
  5. Lime Wire countersues RIAA
    By Nate Anderson
    Published: September 26, 2006
    Ars Technica
  6. Judge refuses to entertain Lime Wire conspiracy theories against RIAA
    By Nate Anderson
    Published: December 04, 2007
    Ars Technica
  7. MP3
    Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
  8. LimeWire to "go legit" with 256Kbps DRM-free music sales
    By Jacqui Cheng
    Published: August 15, 2007
    Ars Technica

 

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Created: Sunday December 30, 2007