The music trading program Napster has been one of the most popular subjects online since we began the Lycos 50. It has been on the list for 51 weeks, and was rated as the #8 web topic for the year 2000.
Napster searches sharply rose after last week's announcement that a federal appellate court had found Napster liable for copyright infringement. Two scenarios are emerging for the program's future: either charging a fee, perhaps five or ten dollars a month, or shutting down entirely.
As you might imagine, Napster users are frightened of both these prospects. How frightened can be shown by the search boom this week for Napster alternatives. In fact, that exact phrase, Napster alternatives, went up an astonishing 1330 percent last week.
This isn't the first time a Napster shutdown has been threatened. This decision was on an appeal of an earlier ruling which came down on July 26. Napster was ordered to shut down then as well, but got a reprieve for the appeal. Just like last week, queries for both Napster and Napster alternatives jumped the week ending July 29, as panicked users searched for free alternatives.
Here's a guide to how the peer-to-peer download world could look after Napster, with a review of some of the terms which Lycos users searched for last week.
The best-known of the Napster substitutes is Gnutella. It is so well known that it has been on the Lycos 50 a number of times. This week searches went up by 250 percent, and Gnutella made it to #7 on the Lycos 50. Coincidentally, that is the same position it held the week of the original Napster shutdown decision. As Gary Gnu might say, Napster g'news is good g'news for Gnutella.
Gnutella's odd name leads to a lot of interesting misspellings. In fact, nine percent of searches misspell the program's name, usually as Nutella. I doubt those are searches for a European hazelnut breakfast spread, but I suppose you never know.
Unlike Napster, Gnutella is decentralized. When you submit your files to Napster, it uses a central server at company headquarters to list your files for other users. With Gnutella, you are contacting other users' PCs directly, without going through a centralized server system. That's one reason why Gnutella is a popular alternative; it can't be shut down. There is no central list of users or head company that can be sued.
Gnutella can be used to trade any type of file, where as Napster can trade only music files. Gnutella is also open-source, which means that the code can be used by anyone to create their own version of the program. These versions get easier and easier to use over time and more and more of them are appearing.
In fact, the two most currently popular versions of Gnutella did not receive any searches when the first Napster ruling came down in July. Over the last three weeks, however, we've seen steady search growth for both Limewire, with 730 percent growth over the last three weeks, and Bearshare, with 460 percent growth in the same period. Interestingly, these two search terms have been growing more steadily than most Napster alternatives, so the one-week jump was less dramatic.
Another open-source alternative is OpenNap, which saw searches go up by 490 percent this week. The programmers who created OpenNap reverse-engineered the Napster software to create their own version that looks and feels like the original.
OpenNap is slightly more decentralized than Napster, since there is no "OpenNap Corporation," and it's servers are more widely distributed. Nonetheless, the program does require some servers to serve as middlemen, so it is endangered by the Napster ruling. A program called Napigator tracks these servers, and its searches were up 245 percent this week as well.
Also searched commonly is Freenet, which was up 475 percent this week. Freenet has been around for a while -- it was #44 on the Lycos 50 the week of the first Napster shutdown threat. Freenet is particularly well-known because creator Ian Clarke has been quite openly political about the implications of the Napster lawsuit on questions of freedom and privacy.
Finally, we've seen a lot of searches for Aimster, which went up 410 percent this week. Aimster isn't a peer-to-peer file-sharing program itself, it is a supplement which connects to Gnutella, Napster, and other programs, and makes them easier to use if you own AOL Instant Messenger (which comes in a special Lycos version that we recommend).
Lycos has you covered on Napster: You can keep track of the Napster controversy with Wired News, download MP3 files from Lycos Music, or grab Freenet or Limewire at Lycos Computers. Or download the original, Napster, and join all the users who are going through a file-trading orgy before the system finally (maybe) shuts down.
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The Lycos 50 will be on vacation Monday. Tuesday, we'll unveil the new Lycos 50. Which topic will be highest next week - The Grammies, the death of Dale Earnhardt, or the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue? Comment on your pick on the Lycos 50 clubs.
