EasyEverything fights music biz over download demands
Posted: 12/08/2002 at 13:55 GMT
Cybercafe chain EasyEverything is digging in its heels over the music industry's attempt to make it cough up £100,000 for allowing its customers to download music from the Net.
EasyEverything - which vigorously defends its brand name and is happy to chase domain owners who include the term "easy" in their URL - said it stopped allowing its punters to burn CDs around a year ago.
However, earlier this year the British Phonographic Industry (BPI's) demanded that the cybercafe cough up £1m to cover the cost of lost revenues for the record industry caused by people downloading music for free.
When this was rejected, the BPI revised the figure downwards to £380,000.
In the latest ultimatum the BPI has told EasyEverything to cough up £100,000 by August 14 - or else.
EasyEverything has dismissed this latest claim and instead offered the BPI £20,000 in a bid to avoid the cost of dragging the matter through the courts.
A spokesman for EasyEverything said that the company had cooperated fully with the BPI over the matter.
But he exclaimed: "They're holding a gun to our heads."
The BPI declined to comment except to say that the legal process is ongoing. ®