A United States court has blocked the sale of online music swapping service Napster to the German media giant Bertelsmann.

Bertelsmann intended to capitalise on Napsters head start in the market - a market it itself created - and its established brand, and Napster was relying on the lifeline offered by the media conglomerate.

In what will undoubtably be seen as a milestone in the story of the development of the internet, Napster, left with no revenue or financing, will be left with no choice but to file for bankruptcy and close.

The development will no doubt be greeted warmly by the music industry, particulary bands such as Metallica who famously tried to sue the company. However, the online swapping market continues to grow strongly, with other services such as Gnutella continuing where Napster left off, and with no sign that the media industries have found a way of halting the abuse of their copyrighted material.

Such is the influence of the Napster 'brand' though that all other such services, despite Napster bowing out of the scene due to legal restrictions over a year ago, continue to be refered to as 'Napster Clones'.


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