Since making the Recording Industry Association of America's list of alleged major offenders of illegal downloads a year ago, the University of Wisconsin-Madison remains vigilant. That's according to Brian Rust, Communication's Manager with the UW Division of Information Technology. UW Madison's standing in the most recent RIAA list has remarkably improved.
One of the latest techniques UW has implemented in educating students on file sharing laws is a required video. After returning to student housing from winter break, those who attempted to log onto the network, had to click through the school appropriate use policies regarding file sharing. The tool also involved a short video which, Rust says, which students helped produce and even act in.
The university feels educational outreach is the best approach. "The RIAA would like to have every institution use file-filtering software, which has been demonstrated, is of moderate effectiveness at best and actually slows down network traffic," says Rust. He adds that much of the file sharing happening on campus is for legitimate purposes, such as sanctioned learning materials and communication correspondence.
Matt Schmidt with the International Trademark Association explains in a college setting there is a high demand for music and the time and ability to file share. He calls these conditions "a perfect storm" for illegal downloading activity.
