After a year of legal wrangling, Napster's future remains as uncertain as the quality of a bagel at a West Virginia truck stop. Frankly, we can. That's what we do. After years of legal thumb wrestling, Napster finally strikes a comprehensive deal with all the major record labels to distribute their music to paid subscribers only. The high price tag covers royalties for the artists and labels as well as the tremendous cost of monitoring the network for illegal copyright files and unregistered users.
Thousands are missing and presumed dead, or worse, are without their favorite tunes.
The cult members quickly evolve their own language by which to share files undetected by the aboveground networks. It's simple, yet effective. Of course, to survive without the luxuries of food and potable water, they are forced to begin eating rats and small children. A paltry price to pay for free music. Forced to block all copyright MP3 files, Napster is immediately shunned by Internet hipsters, and instead becomes a safe haven for straightlaced surfers and other assorted stiffs.