If you remember the file sharing site Napster, then you know that it dramatically changed the way people consumed music. Napster is the brainchild of a 19-year-old Sean Parker, who co-founded the company with Shawn and John Fanning in 1999. Napster allowed the public to download music among many other files and software straight to your computer. The music industry was revolutionized with the introduction of Napster. Record labels and artists, in particular did not want Napster around and accused the company of setting off a wave of piracy. Napster gave birth to companies such as LimeWire, FrostWire and ShareBeast, all of which have been shut down by the feds. Now Napster is looking to make its return.
In 2001 Napster was hit with lawsuit after lawsuit for copyright infringement and a year later it filed for bankruptcy. Since their bankruptcy, the brand and company has fallen through the hands of a few companies, including Best Buy, and a German media conglomerate Bertelsmann. A few months back reports circulated that Napster was looking to make a comeback. Those reports have been confirmed, but it’s not the Napster that most of us remember.
Rhapsody, who bought the remnants of Napster in 2011, is using “Napster” as the name for their new music streaming service, in an effort to rebrand themselves. The Napster brand has already re-emerged in other countries like Canada, Belgium, Germany and a bunch of other European countries, since 2013. The U.S. is next on the list to get reacquainted with the once beloved brand. Napster will be a legit service this time. Users will not be able to download music freely, like in the 90’s, because that was and still is highly illegal. (Yes, that means you were a criminal). A representative of Rhapsody explained that not much is changing besides the name.
"No changes to your playlists, favorites, albums and artists. Same music. Same service. Same price. 100% the music you love. Stay tuned!"
Napster will be playing catch up in an industry that it helped progress. Other major streaming services, such as Spotify and Apple music are dominating, creating an up-hill battle for Napster.
