Controversy Over allofmp3.com Rages On

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative has released a report concerning what it calls a "bilateral market access agreement that is an important element in Russia’s accession to the World Trade Organization." Alongside the stated goals of "new opportunities for U.S. producers and exporters of industrial and agricultural goods [and] the immediate implementation of some market opening actions for industrial and agricultural goods," the agreement also "puts in place a strong and enforceable bilateral blueprint for protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights." The report then specifically mentions allofmp3.com, the popular Russian online music download service, as an example of the type of site that will be shutting down as a result of the agreement.

Not surprisingly, this isn't the first time the online music provider has come under fire. Officers from allofmp3.com, however, persist that their service is legal in the U.S. due to "at least several statutes, each of which, should allow users to access [their] service in the US; such as 17 U.S.C. §§ 602(a) (the 'Importation for Private Use Exception'); 1008, 1001 (the 'iPod Exception'); 109 (the 'First-Sale Doctrine/Anti-Double-Dip Exception'); 107, 117 (the 'Fair-Use/Backup Exception'); among others."

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