Allofmp3.com owner cleared by Russian court

CNN is reporting that a Russian court has acquitted allofmp3.com owner, Denis Kvasov, of charges of copyright infringement. The judge in the case saying "The prosecution did not succeed in presenting persuasive evidence of his involvement in infringing copyright law". Allofmp3 came under fire from increasing pressure of the music industry giants as Russia was making a bid for inclusion in the World Trade Organization (WTO), the case was seen as a test of Russia's commitment to fighting copyright pirates. Soon after the lawsuit was brought against Kvasov's company another site which looks suspiciously similar and allows users to use the same accounts, mp3sparks.com, opened.

Russian download site does shuffling act

Controversial Russian music downloading site allofmp3.com (404 error) has closed it's doors only to reappear as mp3Sparks.com. allofmp3 was subject of much debate especially during the World Trade Organizations talks regarding Russia's potential membership into the organization. The parent company of allofmp3, MediaServices, was subject of a number of lawsuits brought on by recording companies and their associations while the Russian government was being attacked for allowing it to operate. MediaServices has maintained that it pays royalties to a Russian licensing body and that it warns users from other countries to heed their local laws. The move to close down allofmp3 is being considered as a minor victory but one that holds little meaning if the service is able to resurface under a new name. BBC News story here.