"Gotcha! ... Or At Least Someone"

It begins April 1, 2004. The MediaSentry P2P monitoring service detects and logs unauthorized activity on the Kazaa/Fast Track P2P network at IP address 4.12.92.108 port 1214 (a standard Fast Track port). The IP address is traced to a Dallas Verizon Internet user.

The user name is raega@fileshare, which indicates that user "raega" is using iMesh P2P file sharing software to connect to Fast Track.

Eleven songs are fully downloaded. Downloaded data is received from the IP address for a number of songs, including artists Smashing Pumpkins, Nelly, Brooks & Dunn, Marcy Playground, Orgy, Van Halen, Journey, Ludacris, Thompson Twins, Pet Shop Boys, Phil Collins, and Ricky Martin & Christina aguilera.

The user shares a total of 668 audio files. 47 of them are "direct matches", presumably by title to RIAA member copyrighted songs. Kazaa screenshots also show the files the user is sharing.

This evidence is provided in over 200 pages of hardcopy printout. Part of it is included in Plaintiffs' First Amended Complaint of 10-21-05.

P2P CEO and blogger Marc Freedman serves as an expert consultant and witness in Sony BMG et al v. Kimberly Arellanes, a United States Federal music copyright infringement lawsuit. Stay tuned here as he follows the case with news, background, and observations. More information on the case and an index and timeline of blog entries can be found at Save Our Music and the Arrelanes page.