The era of internet piracy began in May of 1999 when a college student founded an internet website called Napster that allowed users to upload and download music for free through connected computer networks (Internet Piracy). In the first four months of its initial release, Napster hosted roughly 1 million users (Bach 4). After one year, however, the service became so popular that the Napster community expanded to an unprecedented 20 million users. Though it was eventually charged for copyright infringement and lost a series of legal battles, Napster had already introduced the world to internet piracy. For the first time ever, Napster, in just two years, caused the music industry, specifically in compact disc sales, to steadily lose roughly $500 million in revenue in each preceding year (Bach 5). The damage that these rogue websites have done to the entertainment industry by promoting and hosting file sharing services has been catastrophic. .

             In the fifth annual global piracy study by the Business Software Alliance, BSA discovered that in 2007, "Worldwide, for every two dollars' worth of software purchased legally, one dollars' worth was obtained illegally. (BSA) " Not only is internet piracy hurting the economy by dramatically lowering sales in the worldwide market, it is also making it increasingly difficult for artists, developers and their companies to produce new content to stimulate economic growth because of the daunting fact that their product will more likely be copied and redistributed rather than acquired legally through purchase. In the United States music industry, for example, the NPD group reported that only 37% of music acquired by consumers in 2009 was paid for (RIAA). If there is no payout, producers have less incentive to quickly develop new content. Likewise, without the revolving door of investment and revenue, the ability to bring the next generation of talent, such as artists and inventors, to the marketplace is diminished- as is the incentive for the aspiring talent to pursue a full time career in his or her desired industry (Gee 20).