Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America emerged in 1952 as a trade organization representing the U.S. recording industry. Its original mission was to administer recording copyright fees and problems, work with trade unions, and do research relating to the record industry and government regulations. Early RIAA standards included the RIAA equalization curve, the format of the stereophonic record groove and the dimensions of 33 1/3, 45, and 78 rpm records. These technical specifications defined how music sounded on vinyl for decades. The association established these rules to ensure consistency across different manufacturers and players. Without such standardization, consumers would face incompatible formats that ruined listening experiences. The organization operated from Washington, D.C., where it continues to maintain its headquarters today.
The RIAA launched its award program in 1958 to recognize albums selling large numbers of copies. Originally, the requirement for a Gold single was one million units sold and a Gold album represented $1 million in sales at wholesale value. In 1975, the additional requirement of 500,000 units sold was added for Gold albums. Reflecting growth in record sales, the Platinum award was added in 1976, for albums able to sell one million units. The Multi-Platinum award was introduced in 1984, signifying multiple Platinum levels of albums and singles. In 1992, the RIAA began counting each disc in a multi-disc set as one unit toward certification. Because of these changes in criteria, the sales level associated with a particular award depends on when the award was made. Since 2000, the RIAA also operates a similar program for Latin music sales called Los Premios de Oro y De Platino. Currently, a Disco De Oro is awarded for 30,000 units, and a Disco De Platino is awarded for 60,000 units.
The association has commenced high-profile lawsuits against file-sharing service providers since the late 1990s. It sued individuals suspected of file sharing, notably college students, parents of file-sharing children and at least one dead person. In October 1998, the RIAA filed a lawsuit in the Ninth U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco claiming the Diamond Multimedia Rio PMP300 player violated the 1992 Audio Home Recording Act. The three-judge panel ruled in favor of Diamond, paving the way for the development of the portable digital player market. In September 2003, the RIAA filed suit in civil court against several private individuals who had shared large numbers of files with Kazaa. Most of these suits were settled with monetary payments averaging $3,000. On the 30th of June 2009, the RIAA prevailed in its fight against Usenet.com, in a decision that the U.S. District Judge Harold Baer of the Southern District of New York ruled in favor of the music industry on all its main arguments. By March 2007, the focus had shifted from ISPs to colleges and universities.
Between 2001 and 2020, the RIAA spent between $2.4 million and $6.5 million annually on lobbying in the United States. The organization ramped up its lobbying efforts in 2025, partly in response to artificial intelligence. In 1999, Mitch Glazier, a Congressional staff attorney, inserted substantive language into the final markup of a technical corrections section of copyright legislation. This classified many music recordings as works made for hire, thereby stripping artists of their copyright interests and transferring those interests to their record labels. Shortly afterwards, Glazier was hired as Senior Vice President of Government Relations and Legislative Counsel for the RIAA. The battle over the disputed provision led to the formation of the Recording Artists' Coalition, which successfully lobbied for repeal of the change. On the 23rd of October 2020, the code repository hosting service GitHub released a DMCA request from the RIAA listing the open-source software project youtube-dl as copyright violations. Critics say the software library can be used by archivists to download videos of social injustice.
Goddard Lieberson served as president from 1964 to 1972, followed by Stanley Gortikov who held the position until 1987. Jay Berman led the association from 1988 to 1998 as both president and chair. Hilary Rosen took over from 1998 to 2001, then Mitch Bainwol served as chairman and CEO from 2003 to 2011. Cary Sherman guided the organization from 2011 to 2019 before Mitch Glazier became chairman and CEO in 2019. Glazier joined the RIAA 20 years ago and has played a role in the music industry's transition to streaming and anywhere anytime access to music. He was the RIAA's senior executive vice president from 2011 to 2019 and served as executive vice president for public policy and industry relations from 2000 to 2011. As of 2018, the RIAA's 26-member board of directors included executives from major labels like Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, and Warner Music Group.
The RIAA is heavily criticized for both policy and for their method of suing individuals for copyright infringement. The association has sued more than 20,000 people in the United States suspected of distributing copyrighted works. Of these, approximately 2,500 were settled pre-trial. Brad Templeton of the Electronic Frontier Foundation has called these types of lawsuits spamigation and implied they are done merely to intimidate people. In some rare cases, the RIAA's methods of identifying individual users had led to the issuing of subpoenas to persons dead or otherwise incapable of file-sharing. Two such examples include a then-recently deceased 83-year-old woman and an elderly computer novice. A family reportedly without any computer at all also faced legal action. On the 29th of October 2010, riaa.org was taken offline via denial-of-service attacks executed by members of Operation Payback and Anonymous after RIAA members won a case against LimeWire. The organization faces strong criticism from Internet-based advocates including the Electronic Frontier Foundation and Students for Free Culture.
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Common questions
When was the Recording Industry Association of America established and where is its headquarters located?
The Recording Industry Association of America emerged in 1952 as a trade organization representing the U.S. recording industry. The association operated from Washington, D.C., where it continues to maintain its headquarters today.
What were the original requirements for RIAA Gold and Platinum awards when they launched in 1958 and 1976?
Originally, the requirement for a Gold single was one million units sold and a Gold album represented $1 million in sales at wholesale value. In 1976, the Platinum award was added for albums able to sell one million units.
Which specific lawsuits did the Recording Industry Association of America file against technology companies between 1998 and 2003?
In October 1998, the RIAA filed a lawsuit in the Ninth U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco claiming the Diamond Multimedia Rio PMP300 player violated the 1992 Audio Home Recording Act. In September 2003, the RIAA filed suit in civil court against several private individuals who had shared large numbers of files with Kazaa.
Who served as chairman and CEO of the Recording Industry Association of America from 2019 until 2025 and what is their background?
Mitch Glazier became chairman and CEO of the Recording Industry Association of America in 2019 after serving as executive vice president for public policy and industry relations from 2000 to 2011. He joined the organization 20 years ago and has played a role in the music industry's transition to streaming and anywhere anytime access to music.
How many people have been sued by the Recording Industry Association of America since the late 1990s and how many cases were settled pre-trial?
The association has sued more than 20,000 people in the United States suspected of distributing copyrighted works. Of these, approximately 2,500 were settled pre-trial.