] The U.S. Justice Department recommended a sweeping
] transformation of the nation's intellectual-property
] laws, saying peer-to-peer piracy is a "widespread"
] problem that can be addressed only through more spending,
] more FBI agents and more power for prosecutors.
]
] In an extensive report released Tuesday, senior
] department officials endorsed a pair of controversial
] copyright bills strongly favored by the entertainment
] industry that would criminalize "passive sharing" on
] file-swapping networks and permit lawsuits against
] companies that sell products that "induce" copyright
] infringement.
]
] "The department is prepared to build the strongest, most
] aggressive legal assault against intellectual-property
] crime in our nation's history," Attorney General John
] Ashcroft, who created the task force in March, said at a
] press conference in Los Angeles on Tuesday afternoon.