LimeWire was a free peer-to-peer file sharing client for Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, and Solaris.[1] Created by Mark Gorton[2][3][4] in 2000, it was most prominently a tool used for the download and distribution of pirated materials, particularly pirated music.[5] In 2007, LimeWire was estimated to be installed on over one-third of all computers globally.[6]
Both a zero-cost version and a purchasable “enhanced” version called LimeWire Pro were available; however, LimeWire Pro could be acquired for free through the standard LimeWire software, where users distributed it without authorization. LimeWire uses the gnutella network as well as the BitTorrent protocol.[7]
On October 26, 2010, U.S. federal court judge Kimba Wood issued an injunction ordering Lime Wire LLC to prevent “the searching, downloading, uploading, file trading and/or file distribution functionality, and/or all functionality” of its software in Arista Records LLC v. Lime Group LLC.[8][9] A trial investigating the damages necessary to compensate the affected record labels was scheduled to begin in January 2011.[10] As a result of the injunction, the Recording Industry Association of America initially suggested that LimeWire was responsible for $72 trillion in damages, before eventually settling for $105 million.[11][12] Thereafter, the company stopped distributing the LimeWire software, and versions 5.5.11 and newer have been disabled using a backdoor installed by the company. However, version 5.5.10 and all prior versions of LimeWire remain fully functional and cannot be disabled unless a user upgrades to one of the newer versions.
