What about those Metallica traders? Over 30,000 of the users identified by Metallica have since disputed the ban, stating under penalty of perjury via a form on the Napster web site that they were identified by mistake. According to the terms specified in the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, Napster has to submit these petitions to Metallica, if the metal band takes no actions within 10 days ,Napster can reinstate the users accounts. When asked about the 30,000 disputes by Napster users, Metallica�s lawyer Howard King states that Metallica is not likely to challenge the users claims. He told the Hollywood Reporter, �"It shows what a complete joke Napster's so-called anti-copyright infringement policy was. They've turned 17,000 people into perjurers by encouraging them to lie under oath." 

Just how popular is Napster? If a recent survey released by Webnoize, Inc. is any indication, the percentage of use among America�s youth, a key target audience for the record industry, will be sending shivers down the spine of Record Company big wigs and their accountants. 

A total of 4,294 students at 10 New England schools were surveyed about the controversial software.   The results show that 73% of U.S. College students use Napster�s software at least once a month. 

 The survey also showed that 58.5% of the students asked would be willing to pay $15 a month for the Napster service or one like it. This could lead the way to a compromise between the software company and Record companies, if Napster were to charge their users a subscription fee that in turn could be used to pay royalties to artists. It's not likely to happen, but this survey does give give us a ray of hope for the future of digital music on the web.