KaZaA Suspends New Signups
Netherlands-based FastTrack has voluntarily chosen to block new users from signing up to KaZaA, it's popular file swapping service, until the end of the month. The company is awaiting a decision in its court battle with Buma/Stemra, a Dutch copyright organization which FastTrack had been in negotiations with over licensing.
A note on the KaZaA download site simply reads, "Download of the KaZaA Media Desktop software is temporarily and voluntarily suspended pending Dutch court decision on January 31. We apologise for the inconvenience."
KaZaA, MusicCity and Grokster -- which all run on the same file-swapping network -- have each come under legal fire after gaining much post-Napster popularity. KaZaA last month refused to prevent current users from connecting to the service, despite risks of heavy fines.