Looks like the RIAA has scored another Pyrrhic victory - this time against a Minnesota woman who illegally downloaded a bunch of major label music.
I don't see how pursuing and winning massive judgments against individual music thieves is the best way to address the problem. The case against Napster was successful, in part, because Napster provided the forum for illegal file-sharing and, according to the court, knew that illegal file-sharing was occurring. But the federal court ruled in favor of Grokster, Morpheus and KaZaA in 2003, ruling that those services weren't actively encouraging people to use their software illegally. If the RIAA can't make their case against the companies that are crippling the music industry then it's time to regroup and move on.
I don't have much sympathy for people who share music files illegally but neither do I see the point in going after them for enormous judgments. Certainly the RIAA has a right to do so, and I support that right, but I don't see how it's supposed to fix the problem. Has there been a significant decrease in illegal file-sharing in the wake of the judgments against the defendants in any of these cases? I seriously doubt it.
The horse left the barn years ago and the RIAA goofs are still trying to close the gate. You and I couldn't do any better if we were writing a comedy script.