Ex-RIAA Chiefs Start Anti-Piracy Firm

Two former RIAA leaders, Jay Berman and Hilary Rosen, announced Thursday that they were partnering to form an anti-piracy consulting agency. The two plan to focus on intellectual property protection, digital media technology, international trade issues and anti-piracy strategies.

Rosen is probably most well known for her stint as the chief of the RIAA during the height of the Napster battle, while Berman, also once chief of the RIAA, headed the IFPI during that same time. The combined effort would be called Berman Rosen Global Strategies, but the two said that it would act as a consultancy rather than a lobbying firm.

"Digital delivery and acquisition of entertainment is changing with lightening speed and so is the need to protect and promote the creative expressions that provide this entertainment," Berman said. "We can help guide businesses in the entertainment space on a variety of important issues such as licensing, public policy and anti-piracy tactics, both in the U.S. and internationally."

The two have developed a set of criteria with the help of economist Barry Massarsky that would help business and investors predict the impact of piracy on both acquisitions and investments where intellectual property is an issue.

"We have a unique combination of knowledge and experience," said Rosen.

Rosen had stayed largely out of the spotlight for the last two years after retiring from the RIAA, save for a few public comments including a May Web log post on the Huffington Post pleading with Steve Jobs to open up the iPod.

Berman has spent the last six years working with European and Latin American governments on piracy and market access issues on behalf of the international recording industry.