WILL THE NAPSTER SUITS STOP?

Matthew Katz, the original manager and producer of Jefferson Airplane, has filed a copyright infringement suit against Napster, its executives and supporters in the music industry.

Named in the suit were the company's co-founders shawn fanning',390,400);">shawn fanning',390,400);">Shawn Fanning and Sean Parker; fred durst',390,400);">fred durst',390,400);">Fred Durst of rock band Limp Bizkit and Roger McGuinn of the Byrds, both of whom have expressed support for the file-swapping software; Napster's CEO Hank Barry; investors in the company, including venture capitalist firm Hummer Winblad; and all Napster users.

The suit, filed in the United States District Court for the Central District of California on Monday alleges copyright infringement, contributory and vicarious infringement, trademark infringement and unfair competition.

Katz, who is seeking statutory damages in excess of $10 million, owns the copyrights to various songs from bands including Jefferson Airplane, It's A Beautiful Day and Moby Grape.

Katz told The Hollywood Reporter that due to Napster swapping his copyrighted songs, "We virtually have been put out of business. I haven't sold anything since January. Everything I do is for collectors and hard to get, so this is hitting me really hard."

Napster's big day in court is July 26, when Judge Marilyn Patel will hand down a ruling on the RIAA's litigation against the file-swapping service.