While Napster is a haven for money-strapped music lovers, a shut down of the service would be understandable.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Monday that Napster must prevent users from downloading copyrighted material through the service. Napster officials said the ruling could force the service to shut down.

A three-judge panel asked a lower-court judge to rewrite her injunction against the service to focus on copyrighted material. Napster can remain in business until the injunction is ready.

It is estimated an average of 1.5 million users were logged on to the system at any one time this weekend. Napster typically has about 6,000 users logged on to each of its 100 servers. Users downloaded an estimated 250 million songs this weekend, according to Webnoize, which monitors the digital entertainment economy.

Napster was launched in May 1999 and claims more than 50 million users.

While Napster provides a valuable service to millions of music lovers, its illegality is undeniable. Despite the company’s knowledge and control, or lack thereof, of the material exchanged through its service, it can’t be denied that copyrighted material is being exchanged without compensation to the creator.

Though the offense is relatively minor, it is still wrong. Whether you’re taking a candy bar or stealing money from the register, it’s still stealing.

While celebrating its court victory, the record industry needs to examine the reality of music availability on the Internet. Even if Napster is shut down for good, there will still be other programs for music seekers to use. Even without services, MP3 files are easily accessible to even the most inexperienced computer users.

The industry could help itself by looking into the feasibility of using MP3s as a helpful marketing tool instead of a source of destruction.

Napster and similar programs are valuable tools for music lovers. They serve as a free preview of a product and help establish up-and-coming acts. It is a convenient way for people to get the music they want at any time under almost any circumstances. Napster provides an avenue to access rare songs and versions of songs users may not be able to find anywhere else.

Music buyers still crave a tangible product. A downloaded version just isn’t the same as the full, manufactured product.

Record sales have not lagged as a result of Napster and other services. In 1999, the year Napster was introduced, record sales were the highest they have been in years. Artists like Britney Spears and ’N Sync, who are amongst the most popular Napster downloads, enjoyed multi-platinum sales in the past year.

Last weekend’s download surge is evidence of Napster’s popularity and of the thousands of dollars potentially lost by the misuse of copyrighted material. This abuse of copyrights could impact areas far beyond the music industry. While Napster is a great innovation in music distribution, it cannot be allowed to provide illegal services to the masses.