WMG, UMG CRACK DOWN ON INTERNAL FILE-SHARING

Employees for at least one major media conglom could lose their jobs if they’re caught with an illegal peer-to-peer network such as KaZaA, Morpheus, Gnutella or Limewire on their desktops.

That’s the gist of a memo sent around earlier this week to Warner Music Group personnel that warns that "illegal copying of CDs is a serious matter that is adversely affecting the entire music community."

Of course, we downloaded the memo from fuckedcompany.com.

The missive goes on to state: "Lost revenue as a result of piracy undermines the passion and hard work we bring to our jobs, threatening our livelihood and the livelihood of our artists."

Citing "copyright infringement" as being "no less illegal than shoplifting a CD," the e-mail warns, "If you have peer-to-peer software on your company computer, you must remove it immediately," insisting "failure to do so… may lead to disciplinary action, including termination."

It is acceptable to spend up to four hours a day playing computer solitaire, though.

The company will scan its computer network "to detect the presence of file-sharing software on company computers." The communique goes on to state: "The good news is that we have been working hard in recent years to stimulate a legitimate online market for music, and we encourage you to try out the msuiuc services in which we’re involved," offering the link www.musicunited.org/6_legalsites.html as an alternative.

The memo concludes by asking employees to "consider whether any peer-to-peer services are being used on computers in your home."

Employees "who need to access peer-to-peer services in connection with legitimate company business activities" were given a contact for "proper authorization and access" to be arranged.

Universal Music Group also reportedly sent out its own internal correspondence last week with a list of talking points for employees to use in discussions with others to convince them illegal file-sharing is wrong from COO Zach Horowitz and technology exec David Benjamin.

1984 is only 20 years late.