Editing MP3 (section)

=== Internet distribution ===
In the second half of the 1990s, MP3 files began to spread on the [[Internet]], often via underground pirated song networks. The first known experiment in Internet distribution was organized in the early 1990s by the [[Internet Underground Music Archive]], better known by the acronym IUMA. After some experiments<ref>{{cite web | url = https://archive.org/details/iuma-archive&tab=about | title = About Internet Underground Music Archive }}</ref> using uncompressed audio files, this archive started to deliver on the native worldwide low-speed Internet some compressed MPEG Audio files using the MP2 (Layer II) format and later on used MP3 files when the standard was fully completed. The popularity of MP3s began to rise rapidly with the advent of [[Nullsoft]]'s audio player [[Winamp]], released in 1997, which still had in 2023 a community of 80 million active users.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Vainilavičius |first=Justinas |date=15 November 2023 |title=Winamp is back after revamp; nostalgia-inducing looks intact |url=https://cybernews.com/news/winamp-is-back-after-revamp-nostalgia-inducing-looks-intact/ |access-date=8 December 2023 |website=cybernews |archive-date=4 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231204111949/https://cybernews.com/news/winamp-is-back-after-revamp-nostalgia-inducing-looks-intact/ |url-status=live }}</ref> In 1998, [[Windows Media Player]] 5.2 and later added support for MP3 format. In 1998, the first portable solid-state digital audio player [[MPMan]], developed by SaeHan Information Systems, which is headquartered in [[Seoul]], [[South Korea]], was released and the [[Rio PMP300]] was sold afterward in 1998, despite legal suppression efforts by the [[RIAA]].<ref name="seattlepi" />

In November 1997, the website [[mp3.com]] was offering thousands of MP3s created by independent artists for free.<ref name="seattlepi" /> The small size of MP3 files enabled widespread peer-to-peer [[file sharing]] of music [[Ripping|ripped]] from CDs, which would have previously been nearly impossible. The first large [[peer-to-peer]] filesharing network, [[Napster]], was launched in 1999. The ease of creating and sharing MP3s resulted in widespread [[copyright infringement]]. Major record companies argued that this free sharing of music reduced sales, and called it "[[music piracy]]". They reacted by pursuing lawsuits against [[Napster]], which was eventually shut down and later sold, and against individual users who engaged in file sharing.<ref name="Giesler" />

Unauthorized MP3 file sharing continues on next-generation [[peer-to-peer file sharing|peer-to-peer networks]]. Some authorized services, such as [[Beatport]], [[Bleep.com|Bleep]], [[Juno Records]], [[eMusic]], [[Zune Marketplace]], [[Walmart.com]], [[Rhapsody (online music service)|Rhapsody]], the recording industry approved re-incarnation of [[Napster (pay service)|Napster]], and [[Amazon.com]] sell unrestricted music in the MP3 format.