By Richard Menta 3/31/09

One of the most effective search engines for finding music files on the Web filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy yesterday. Pushed to the brink by a massive lawsuit from the major record labels on demand streaming site SeeqPod filed for protection in U.S. Bankruptcy Court of the Northern District of California.

The SeeqPod story is an all to common one in today's technology environment where every innovation seems to be met with litigation. Indeed, since the cost of litigation alone can quickly suck away any small startup's venture capital dry, lawsuits are a very effective tool for eliminating unwanted competition. Of course, this does not necessarily mean those looking to close SeeqPod should declare victory.

As we pointed out last year in our article SeeqPod Suit Thoughts:

The legality of SeeqPod aside, the suit ultimately suffers from the same weakness as the Napster suit. The SeeqPod concept is an easy one to copy. Closing SeeqPod could only speed the emergence of clones, many overseas and away from US jurisdiction.

SeeqPod is already helping this transition along. Last week Seeqpod annouced that it was selling its source code to any developer who can pony up $5,000. It is not known how many have taken the company on its offer, but if a myriad of Seeqpod clones do appear throughout the nooks and crannies of this world history may repeat itself.