RECORD INDUSTRY UNSETTLED BY INTERNET THREAT.

Record companies have said the Rio, a small device that enables users to access music on the Internet, is a direct threat and they have called for it to be banned. A Californian Court ruled on October 27 that the device could be sold, but the Record Industry Association of America (RIAA members control 90% of the music market), argues that the technology encourages consumers to circumvent copyright by accessing pirate recordings on the Internet.The Association claims in a single day to have uncovered more than 80 sites offering some 20,000 titles. The record industry has been reluctant to move onto the on-line music market because of fears that recordings will be copied without payment. However, Robert Kohn, Chairman of GoodNoise, an Internet site with more than 4,000 titles on...