Jump to content

LimeWire

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Not to be confused withLiveWire.

LimeWire
Developer(s)Lime Wire LLC
Initial releaseMay 3, 2000;24 years ago(2000-05-03)
Final release
5.5.16Edit this on Wikidata / 26 October 2010;13 years ago(26 October 2010)
Preview release
5.6.1Edit this on Wikidata / 7 May 2010;14 years ago(7 May 2010)
Written inJava
PlatformJava SE
Available in32 languages[citation needed]
TypePeer-to-peer file sharing
LicenseGPL-2.0-or-later

LimeWirewas afreepeer-to-peer file sharingclient forWindows,macOS,LinuxandSolaris.[1]Created byMark Gorton[2][3][4]in 2000, it was most prominently a tool used for the download and distribution ofpirated materials,particularlypirated music.[5]In 2007, LimeWire was estimated to be installed on over one-third of all computers globally.[6]

Both azero-costversion 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 thegnutellanetwork as well as theBitTorrent protocol.[7]

On October 26, 2010, U.S. federal court judgeKimba Woodissued 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 inArista 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, theRIAAinitially 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 abackdoorinstalled 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.[13][14]

Features

[edit]

Written in theJava programming language,LimeWire can run on any computer with aJava Virtual Machineinstalled. Installers were provided forApple'sMac OS X,Microsoft's Windows,andLinux.Support forMac OS 9and other previous versions was dropped with the release of LimeWire 4.0.10. From version 4.8 onwards, LimeWire works as aUPnPInternet Gateway Devicecontroller in that it can automatically set up packet-forwarding rules with UPnP-capable routers.

LimeWire offers sharing of its library through theDigital Audio Access Protocol(DAAP). As such, when LimeWire is running and configured to allow it, any files shared are detectable and downloaded on the local network byDAAP-enableddevices (e.g.,Zune,iTunes). Beginning with LimeWire 4.13.9, connections can be encrypted withTransport Layer Security(TLS). Following LimeWire 4.13.11, TLS became the default connection option.[15]

Version history

[edit]

Until October 2010, Lime Wire LLC, the New York City based developer of LimeWire, distributed two versions of the program: a basicgratisversion, and an enhanced version, LimeWire PRO, which sold for a fee of $21.95 with 6 months of updates, or around $35.00 with 1 year of updates. The company claimed the paid version provides faster downloads and 66% better search results. This is accomplished by facilitating direct connection with up to 10 hosts of an identical searched file at any one time, whereas the gratis version is limited to a maximum of 8 hosts.[16][17]

LimeWire 2

Beingfree software,LimeWire has spawnedforks,including LionShare, an experimental software development project atPenn State University,[18]and Acquisition, aMac OS X-based gnutella client with a proprietary interface.[19]Researchers atCornell Universitydeveloped a reputation management add-in calledCredencethat allows users to distinguish between "genuine" and "suspect" files before downloading them.[20]An October 12, 2005, report states that some of LimeWire's contributors have forked the project and called itFrostWire.[21]

LimeWire was the second file sharing program after FrostWire to support firewall-to-firewall file transfers, a feature introduced in version 4.2, which was released in November 2004. LimeWire also now includesBitTorrentsupport, but is limited to three torrent uploads and three torrent downloads, which coexist with ordinary downloads. LimeWire 5.0 added an instant messenger that uses theXMPPProtocol, a free software communication protocol. Users can chat and share files with individuals or a group of friends in their buddy list.

A screenshot of Limewire 5 0 11 beta

From version 5.5.1, LimeWire has added a key activation, which requires the user to enter the unique key before activating the "Pro" version of the software. This has stopped people from using downloaded "Pro" versions without authorization. However, there are still ways to bypass this security feature, which was done when creating the "Pirate Edition". For example, cracked versions of LimeWire were available on the Internet (including on LimeWire itself), and people could continue using the LimeWire Pro 5.5.1 Beta, which also includesAVGfor LimeWire and is the first version to include AVG. The most recent stable version of LimeWire is 5.5.16.

Versions of LimeWire prior to 5.5.10 can still connect to the Gnutella network and users of these versions are still able to download files, even though a message is displayed concerning the injunction during the startup process of the software. LimeWire versions 5.5.11 and newer feature an auto-update feature that allowed Lime Wire LLC to disable newer versions of the LimeWire software. Older versions of LimeWire prior to version 5.5.11, however, do not include the auto-update feature and are still fully functional. As a result, neither the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) nor Lime Wire LLC have the ability to disable older versions of LimeWire, unless the user chooses to upgrade to a newer version of LimeWire.[14]

On November 10, 2010, a secret group of developers called the "Secret Dev Team" sought to keep the application working by releasing the "LimeWire Pirate Edition".[22]The software is based on LimeWire 5.6 Beta, and is aimed to allow Windows versions to still work and remove the threat of spyware or adware. The exclusive features in LimeWire PRO were also unlocked, and all security features installed by Lime Wire LLC were removed.[23][24]

Forks and alternatives

[edit]

A number offorksof LimeWire have been released, many with the goal of giving users more freedom, or in objection to design decisions made by the original developers.

FrostWire

[edit]
Main article:FrostWire

FrostWire was started in September 2004 by members of the LimeWire community, after LimeWire's distributor considered adding "blocking" code, in response toRIAApressure and the threat of legal action, in light of theU.S. Supreme Court's decision inMGM Studios, Inc. v. Grokster, Ltd..When eventually activated, the code could block its users from sharing licensed files. This code was changed when lawsuits had been filed against LimeWire for P2P downloading. It had blocked all their users and redirected them to FrostWire.[citation needed]FrostWire has since completely moved to theBitTorrent protocolfromGnutella(LimeWire's file sharing network).

LimeWire Pirate Edition/WireShare

[edit]
Main article:WireShare

In November 2010, as a response to the legal challenges regarding LimeWire, an anonymous individual by the handle of Meta Pirate released a modified version of LimeWire Pro, which was entitled LimeWire Pirate Edition.[25][26]It came without the Ask toolbar,advertising,spyware,andbackdoors,as well as all dependencies on Lime Wire LLC servers.[27]

In response to allegations that a current or former member of Lime Wire LLC staff wrote and released the software, the company has stated they were "not behind these efforts. LimeWire does not authorize them. LimeWire is complying with the Court's October 26, 2010 injunction."[25]

The LimeWire team, after being accused by the RIAA of being complicit in the development of LimeWire Pirate Edition,[28]swiftly acted to shut down the LimeWire Pirate Edition website. A court order was issued to close down the website, and, to remain anonymous, Meta Pirate, the developer of LimeWire PE, did not contest the order.[29]

Following the shutdown, the original LimeWire Pirate Edition project was reforked into WireShare, with the intent to keep the Gnutella network alive and to maintain a good faith continuation of the original project (without adware or spyware); development of the software continues to this day.[30][31][when?]

MuWire

[edit]

MuWire was released in August 2020 as a free software program resembling LimeWire. Developed by a former LimeWire developer, it usesI2Pto anonymize connections and transfers.[32]MuWire's developer had purchased the limewire domain after it had been allowed to expire, and redirected traffic to MuWire's website for approximately two years, until finally selling it to an unaffiliated party.[33]

Criticism

[edit]

Prior to April 2004, the free version of LimeWire was distributed with a bundled program calledLimeShop(a variant of TopMoxie), which wasspyware.Among other things, LimeShop monitored online purchases in order to redirect sales commissions to Lime Wire LLC. Uninstallation of LimeWire would not remove LimeShop. These objections were addressed in 2004 with the removal of all bundled software in LimeWire 3.9.4.[34]

In LimeWire versions before 5.0, users could accidentally configure the software to allow access to any file on their computer, including documents with personal information. Later versions of LimeWire disabled unintentional sharing of documents or applications. In 2005, the US Federal Trade Commission issued a warning regarding the dangers ofpeer-to-peer file sharingnetwork usage, due to the risk ofidentity theftand lawsuits.[35]

For example, a 2007 identity theft scheme involving LimeWire was discovered in what the U.S. Justice Department described as its first case against someone accused of using file sharing computer programs to commit identity theft. The perpetrator had used LimeWire to search other people's computers for inadvertently shared financial information, which he used it to obtain credit cards for an online shopping spree.[36]

One investigation showed that of 123 randomly selected downloaded files, 37 containedmalware– about 30%.[37]In mid-2008, a Macintoshtrojanexploiting a vulnerability involvingApple Remote Desktopwas distributed via LimeWire affecting users ofMac OS XTigerandLeopard.[38]The ability to distribute such malware and viruses was reduced in versions of LimeWire 5.0 and greater, whose default search settings excluded executable files.

After several years of opposing software bundling, LimeWire released an Ask -powered browser toolbar in 2010, which was automatically installed unless a user opted out.[39]LimeWire automatically received a cryptographically signed file, called simpp.xml, containing an IP block list. It was the key technology behind the now defunct cyber security firmTiversawhich is alleged to have used information from the network to pressure prospective clients into engaging the company's services.[40]

Downfall

[edit]
Main article:Arista Records LLC v. Lime Group LLC

According to a June 2005 report inThe New York Times,Lime Wire LLC was considering ceasing its distribution of LimeWire because the outcome ofMGM v. Grokster"handed a tool to judges that they can declareinducementwhenever they want to ".[41]Nevertheless, the company continued operating and was sued byArista Records,which obtained a favorable decision in 2010. JudgeKimba Woodof theUnited States District Court for the Southern District of New Yorkruled inArista Records LLC v. Lime Group LLCthat LimeWire and Gorton had committed copyright infringement, engaged in unfair competition, and induced others to commit copyright infringement.[42][43]Later in the year, after losing another court battle, with theRIAA,LimeWire was ordered to disable many of its software's capabilities due to the possibility of copyright infringement. The RIAA also announced its intention to seek damages for the program's effects on various record labels.[44][45]In response to the ruling, a company spokesperson said that the company planned to continue operating and would cease distributing and supporting P2P software.[46]RIAA announced a further lawsuit in early 2011, claiming statutory damages of $72 trillion,[47]more than triple the world's annualGDP.The figure relied on an estimate of thousands of downloads for each of the platform's 11,000 songs[48][49]In May 2011, Gorton agreed to a settlement whereby the company would pay thirteen record labels approximately $105 million. Mitch Bainwol, chairman of the RIAA, referred to the "resolution of the case [as] another milestone in the continuing evolution of online music to a legitimate marketplace that appropriately rewards creators."[50]

Reuse of name

[edit]

LimeWire's name was revived in 2022 for an unrelated music-basedNFTplatform,[51]an action with which Gorton expressed displeasure.[33]The NFT marketplace was launched in July 2022, with the first NFT collection from American record producer and rapper7 Aurelius.[52]In September 2023, LimeWire bought BlueWillow, agenerative artificial intelligencetool, and became a place to share images and videos created with it.[53]

See also

[edit]

Similar court rulings

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^"Downloads".
  2. ^Plambeck, Joseph (May 23, 2010)."Idea Man of LimeWire at a Crossroads".The New York Times.ISSN0362-4331.RetrievedOctober 7,2022.
  3. ^"What was Limewire? Here's its fascinating story".slidebean.RetrievedOctober 7,2022.
  4. ^McIntyre, Hugh."The Piracy Sites That Nearly Destroyed The Music Industry: What Happened To Limewire".Forbes.RetrievedOctober 7,2022.
  5. ^Sandoval, Greg."Study: LimeWire demise slows music piracy".CNET.RetrievedOctober 7,2022.
  6. ^Zahn, Jennifer."The life and death of LimeWire".Marquette Wire.RetrievedOctober 8,2022.
  7. ^"Features".
  8. ^Halliday, Josh (October 27, 2010)."LimeWire shut down by federal court".The Guardian.London.
  9. ^Gonsalves, Antone (October 27, 2010)."LimeWire Ordered To Shut Down – File Sharing Sites".InformationWeek.RetrievedJanuary 12,2011.
  10. ^Bangeman, Eric (October 26, 2010)."Sour ruling for LimeWire as court says to turn off P2P functionality".Arstechnica.RetrievedJanuary 12,2011.
  11. ^"The RIAA Claimed LimeWire Owed Them 72 TRILLION Dollars".Business Insider.Archivedfrom the original on June 30, 2022.
  12. ^"Lime Wire settles with RIAA for $105 million".
  13. ^Hachman, Mark (October 28, 2010)."'Anonymous' Plans DDoS Attack on RIAA on Friday ".PC Magazine.RetrievedOctober 29,2010.
  14. ^abHachman, Mark (October 26, 2010)."Lime Wire Turns Off Limewire P2P Service".PC Magazine.RetrievedOctober 29,2010.
  15. ^"Changelog".Archived fromthe originalon September 22, 2010.
  16. ^"The History of LimeWire - A P2P File Sharing Software of the 2000s".Youtube Music Sucks.March 13, 2018.RetrievedJune 26,2019.
  17. ^"How LimeWire Works".HowStuffWorks.January 25, 2008.RetrievedJune 26,2019.
  18. ^"Limewire - Dead Media Archive".cultureandcommunication.org.RetrievedJune 26,2019.
  19. ^"Top 20 Best Peer to Peer P2P File Sharing Programs and Applications".BlogsDNA.January 1, 2019.RetrievedJune 26,2019.
  20. ^"Credence - Thwarting P2P Pollution".cornell.edu.RetrievedJune 26,2018.
  21. ^"FrostWire Beta Released"ArchivedMarch 11, 2007, at theWayback Machine,fromSlyck.
  22. ^"Limewire Brought Back to Life by Secret Dev Team".Limewire Info.November 21, 2010. Archived fromthe originalon March 2, 2011.RetrievedNovember 21,2010.
  23. ^Andrew Lyle.LimeWire resurrected by Secret Dev Team.Neowin.net. Retrieved November 10, 2010. (archive)
  24. ^Enigma x.Torrentfreak %28Torrentfreak%29 LimeWire Resurrected By Secret Dev Team.TorrentFreak. Retrieved November 10, 2010. (archive)
  25. ^abHumphries, Matthew (November 9, 2010)."LimeWire is back as LimeWire Pirate Edition (UPDATED) – Tech Products & Geek News".Geek. Archived fromthe originalon December 1, 2010.RetrievedNovember 30,2010.
  26. ^Albanesius, Chloe (November 9, 2010)."Report: LimeWire 'Resurrected' by Secret Dev Team & Opinion".PC Magazine.RetrievedNovember 30,2010.
  27. ^Anderson, Nate."Horde of piratical monkeys creates LimeWire: Pirate Edition".Ars Technica.RetrievedNovember 30,2010.
  28. ^Sandoval, Greg (November 19, 2010)."RIAA wants revived LimeWire dead and buried".CNET.RetrievedMay 12,2011.
  29. ^Enigma x (November 19, 2010)."LimeWire Pirate Edition Site Nuked By 'Cheap and Dishonest' RIAA Action".TorrentFreak.RetrievedMay 12,2011.
  30. ^"WireShare".SourceForge.RetrievedSeptember 20,2019.
  31. ^"WireShare (formerly entitled LimeWire Pirate Edition)".gnutellaforums.RetrievedSeptember 20,2019.
  32. ^"LimeWire Developer Creates MuWire, an Anonymous File-Sharing Application".
  33. ^abVan der Sar, Ernesto."LimeWire Founder 'Not Thrilled' That 'Strangers' Exploit the Brand for NFT Marketplace".TorrentFreak.RetrievedMarch 17,2022.
  34. ^Lime Wire » Features HistoryArchivedMarch 18, 2006, at theWayback Machine.
  35. ^"FTC Issues Report on Peer-to-Peer File Sharing".Ftc.gov. September 26, 2007. Archived fromthe originalon February 12, 2011.RetrievedJanuary 12,2011.
  36. ^U.S. arrest puts spotlight on file-sharing risk.
  37. ^PC Pro Magazine, September 2008 issue, p. 109.
  38. ^Firms discover Trojan horse targeted at Mac OS X.
  39. ^Limewire BlogArchivedJune 27, 2010, at theWayback Machine
  40. ^A Cybersecurity Firm's Sharp Rise and Stunning CollapseBy Raffi Khatchadourian. The New Yorker, November 4, 2019.
  41. ^Zeller, Tom (June 28, 2005)."Sharing Culture Likely to Pause but Not Wither".The New York Times.RetrievedApril 15,2008.
  42. ^Plambeck, Joseph (May 13, 2010),"Court Rules That LimeWire Infringed On Copyrights",The New York Times
  43. ^"Music Biz Wins Big in LimeWire Copyright Case",ABC News
  44. ^Adegoke, Yinka; Stempel, Jonathan (October 26, 2010)."Court shuts down LimeWire music-sharing service".Reuters.RetrievedOctober 26,2010.
  45. ^Sandoval, Greg (October 26, 2010)."Judge slaps Lime Wire with permanent injunction".CNET.RetrievedOctober 26,2010.
  46. ^"Sour ruling for LimeWire as court says to turn off P2P functionality".Ars Technica.October 27, 2010.RetrievedOctober 26,2010.
  47. ^Mike Fossum (May 24, 2012)."RIAA Lawsuit Against LimeWire for $72 Trillion Shot Down".WebProNews.RetrievedMay 5,2013.
  48. ^Purewal, Sarah Jacobsson. "RIAA Thinks LimeWire Owes $75 Trillion in Damages",PC World,March 26, 2011. Retrieved April 9, 2011.
  49. ^Wood, Kimba."Opinion and order"(PDF).United States District Court, Southern District of New York. p. 6 of the faxed document, 7 of the PDF. Archived fromthe original(PDF of facsimile)on March 31, 2011.RetrievedApril 17,2012.Plaintiffs have never explained to the Court how they would even go about determining how many direct infringers there were per work. However, Plaintiffs have alleged that there were more than 500 million downloads of post-1972 works using the LimeWire system.
  50. ^"LimeWire pays $105m illegal filesharing settlement".FACT.May 13, 2011.
  51. ^Nicolle, Emily (March 10, 2022)."Early 2000s music file-sharing site LimeWire is relaunching as an NFT marketplace".Fortune.RetrievedMarch 15,2022.
  52. ^Navlakha, Meera (July 6, 2022)."It's 2022 and Limewire is now an NFT marketplace. Bye!".Mashable.RetrievedJuly 29,2022.
  53. ^Fried, Ina (September 20, 2023)."LimeWire is back — but this time, it's all about AI".Axios.RetrievedNovember 29,2023.

Sources

[edit]
[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related toLimeWire.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=LimeWire&oldid=1226378777"