To:             Grove City College Students and Employees
From:        Vincent F. DiStasi, Ph.D. ’88, VP-CIO
Sent:        Thursday, August 28, 2008
Subject:    Napster Online Music Service

Dear Campus Community,

Beginning in 2005 Napster and Grove City College entered into the Napster University program, which offered our students a legal way to download and listen to music, as well as provide the College with an expansive digital library of music that could be used in various coursework. 

Napster recently changed its University Program, affecting service with all participating institutions.  Under the revised program, students enroll and pay their subscriptions directly to Napster, and are billed new rates as discussed in the announcement below. This is a Napster business decision and one in which we had no ability to change or alter.

Since receiving this sudden notification from Napster, we have been researching alternative digital media providers that provide a rich selection of music and video.  We are in the midst of conversations and are actively working through the process of creating a new partnership. 

We hope to have more information for you in the near future.  In the meantime, all preregistered Napster members have received a $25 credit on their accounts to refund the full Napster Contract Fee for this year.

While we are disappointed in Napster’s decision to discontinue its University program, there are other viable options that we hope to share soon.  Please be patient as we shift gears towards another quality online media alternative for all campus constituents.

This announcement is by no means a justification for illegal downloading and sharing of music through peer-to-peer applications. Should you do that, legal jeopardy to you could occur.

In addition to the promotion detailed in the announcement from Napster [received via my email], you may be interested in using the Napster web client to play full-length tracks for free although in a somewhat lower quality at http://free.napster.com.

Sincerely,
Vincent F. DiStasi, Ph.D., ‘88
VP-CIO