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With AOL Plus, the company now offers users a range of streaming audio and video...
meanwhile, in Munich, Germany, a provocative precedent was set today when a court ruled AOL was responsible for its users’ swapping of bootleg MP3 files.

AOL LAUNCHES ONE, LOSES ONE

Judgment In Munich, Streaming A/V Highlight Steve Case’s Day

April 12, 2000

On a slow news day like today, we Net hacks can always turn to the ubiquitous America Online for chum—er, make that "content"—to feed our never-sated cybermasters.

Today was definitely a mixed bag for the online leader, with a portentous launch and a problematic ruling.

AOL 5.0 users with high-speed access have been greeted with a new come-on window as they've signed on this week. Said window introduces new service AOL Plus, which enables the streaming of audio and video goodies like news, weather, stock reports, sports and music to subscribers with quick rigs.

Partners in AOL Plus include CBS Sportsline, CBS MarketWatch.com, CNET, CNN, FOXNews.com, FOXSports.com, House of Blues, Launch.com, Travelocity.com and weather.com. The service also includes spinner.com's AOL Plus Radio.

AOL Interactive Services President Barry Schuler seized the occasion to deliver such readymade phrases as, "delivering on our promise of ‘AOL Anywhere,'" "great content, features and functionality" and "anywhere, any time and at any speed." Schuler crashed briefly between soundbites, but AOL's tech staff soon had him up and running again.

Meanwhile, in Munich, Germany, a provocative precedent was set today when a court ruled AOL was responsible for its users' swapping of bootleg MP3 files. The suit had been brought by Hit Box Software, which claimed AOL users had initiated more than 1,000 free downloads of three tracks the company was selling on CD.

An AOL spokesman pointed out the impossibility of controlling all activity on its servers. "Also, that would amount to censorship," he argued, "and such a thing is unheard of in a bastion of freedom such as Germany."

"Besides," he added, "I was just following orders."

The Munich ruling is just the sort of sweeping judicial fulmination the RIAA is hoping for in its suits against MP3.com and Napster. To that end, organization leader Hilary Rosen is said to be planning to draft three Bavarian judges and a Prussian bailiff to be named later.

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TRUMP'S CAMPAIGN PLAYLIST
Now 100% unlicensed!
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