Moscow Court Acquits Music Site Boss

A Russian court has acquitted the founder of Allofmp3.com of breach of copyright, Reuters reports. The now-defunct Russian website infuriated American and Western European music companies by offering cut-rate downloads that they said infringed on their copyright. EMI, Time Warner, and other major corporations insisted on prosecution, but a judge found Allofmp3 had paid sufficient royalties.

Although victorious in court, Denis Kvasov closed down his website with little fanfare in July after credit card companies, under pressure from music corporations, refused to allow customers to make purchases. At one point Allofmp3 had become so popular and so troublesome that the US raised the issue during negotiations over possible Russian membership in the WTO. (More copyright stories.)