LimeWire: the end of the Napster Era | Version History

You wouldn't steal a car. You wouldn't steal a handbag. But plenty of people used LimeWire and other file sharing services to share music, movies and more. If Napster was the beginning of the piracy story, LimeWire may have been the final chapter. Nilay Patel and Sarah Jeong join David Pierce to chart the history of LimeWire and the legal cases that shaped U.S. copyright law and the lives of college students taxing the bandwidth of their dormitory internet. #VersionHistory #LimeWire #Piracy

0:00 The Year 2000: The Rise of Limewire
00:56 Generational Differences in Piracy
02:11 The Legal Landscape of Piracy
06:00 Limewire's Business Model and Popularity
18:23 The Downfall of Limewire
37:54 Limewire's Legal Troubles and Inducement Issues
39:13 Limewire's Attempt to Go Legit
41:03 The Music Industry's Desperation and Limewire's Downfall
46:02 The Aftermath and Legacy of Limewire
48:43 Hypothetical Scenarios and Limewire's Potential
55:53 Version History Questions: Limewire's Impact and Legacy

Subscribe: http://goo.gl/G5RXGs
Like The Verge on Facebook: https://goo.gl/2P1aGc
Follow on Twitter: https://goo.gl/XTWX61
Follow on Instagram: https://goo.gl/7ZeLvX
Follow on TikTok: http://bit.ly/42VeCVU

Watch The Vergecast on YouTube: https://bit.ly/40RFRkg
The Vergecast Podcast: https://bit.ly/3WQDexZ
Decoder with Nilay Patel: http://apple.co/3v29nDc
More about our podcasts: https://www.theverge.com/podcasts

Read More: http://www.theverge.com
Community guidelines: http://bit.ly/2D0hlAv
Wallpapers from The Verge: https://bit.ly/2xQXYJr
Shop our Verge merch store here: https://bit.ly/4kPCmEc

Subscribe to The Verge: https://bit.ly/3FT6n5S

Subscribe to The Vergecast on YouTube, new episodes on Tuesday and Friday: https://bit.ly/3I6nJtz

If you buy something from a Verge link, Vox Media may receive a commission without exerting any influence on editorial content. For more information about our ethics policy, visit: https://www.theverge.com/ethics-state...

Post from The Verge on November 16, 2025

View Original Post