Allofmp3.com Set To Fly Again

The contentious Russian download site, which closed last month, looks set to re-open soon.

The Russian music download site allofmp3.com, which was closed last month, is set to resume “in the foreseeable future,” according to a statement posted on the site.

The site, which claims to be the largest seller of music downloads after iTunes, has been the subject of numerous lawsuits from Western record labels. However, a Moscow court has ruled the site is legal under Russian law.

Most recently Denis Kvasov, the head of Mediaservices, which owns allofmp3.com was tried for intellectual property infringement. He argued successfully that the site paid royalties to the Russian Multimedia and Internet Society (Roms) in accordance with Russian law.

However, a lawyer for the International Federation of the Phonographic Industries (IFPI), which is currently suing the site in both the UK and the US, has stated that if allofmp3.com were to resume trading, it would be in violation of copyright laws inside and outside Russia.

As a sign of how strongly the music industry feels, during talks about Russian’s admission to the WTO, the country was told the site had to close.

allofmp3.com closed its doors last month, but was rapidly replaced by another Mediaservices site, mp3sparks.com, where allofmp3 subscribers could use their credit.