UPDATE: Play It Again Sam

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Just as heavyweight champs Muhammad Ali and Smokin' Joe Frazier mixed it up in three historic bouts, Internet music downloader Jammie Thomas-Rasset and the Recording Industry Association of America are ready to have at each other again.

As "TUOL" blogged earlier this week (see "TUOL" post 1/26/10), Chief Judge Michael Davis of the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota allowed the RIAA seven days within which either to accept his reduction of the RIAA's judgment against Thomas-Rasset from $1.92 million to $54,000, or to request a new trial on the issue of damages.

Reportedly, the defendant rejected an offer of settlement that would have had her contribute $25,000 to a charity devoted to struggling musicians, so the RIAA has opted for a third trial on the damages issue. Once the dust has settled, defense counsel reportedly will challenge the constitutionality of statutes that provide for significant assessment of damages for file-sharing violations.

So like Frazier v. Ali, Thomas-Rasset v. RIAA will have a trilogy of fights.  The principal difference, in the humble opinion of "TUOL," is that in the music downloading battle, it's hard to root for either fighter.