The ruling last month by a US court that the free transfer of copyrighted music was illegal gave the record majors their long-awaited victory over Napster, the controversial music-swapping site.

The embattled company - backed by Bertelsmann, the German media group which controversially joined forces with it last October - swiftly responded by unveiling a business plan which promises to deliver $1bn in extra revenues to music businesses and musicians in the next five years.

In return, Napster, founded by Shawn Fanning, has asked the big five - Sony, Warner, EMI, Universal and BMG - to drop their copyright infringement lawsuit.

As the events captured the headlines, FT.com's discussion forum on this issue - which first got underway last July - came alive again.

Users jumped online to debate Napster's uncertain future and discuss the wider impact online distribution could have on the music industry.

Napster, which has attracted more customers more quickly than any other business in history, already has an action network on its site to try to get some of its estimated 55m users to promote its cause.

Such supporters were out in force on FT.com, urging users to "unite" and take up the fight against the music majors following the decision, while those backing the court decision described Napster users as thieves: "you are operating outside the legal realm of present society, which is your choice... but don't try to convince us that you are crusaders for justice", said one.

Beyond the mudslinging, users were keen to discuss whether Napster could have a revolutionary impact on the music industry.

One user, describing Napster as "Pandora's box", said discussing the court's verdict was fruitless, since Napster's impact on music distribution was irreversible: "The more interesting question was how it will affect the entertainment industry".

"Internet distribution could save the industry millions of dollars for record companies if they decide to integrate the technology," said another, adding that Bertelsmann's surprise decision to break ranks with the major record companies and back Napster, was the "right move".

Thomas Middelhoff, chief executive of Bertelsmann, took a stake in Napster last year because he thinks it could generate a rich revenue stream.

Speaking at the World Economic Forum in January, Mr Middelhoff said he planned to launch Napster as a legitimate subscription business as early as this summer.

An internal survey of 25,000 Napster users conducted by the group showed 70 per cent would be willing to pay for the service.

Napster is planning to charge users roughly between $2.95 and $4.95 per month for its basic service and $5.95 and $9.95 for its premium service.

Some discussion participants urged the other music companies to take similar initiatives, arguing that the industry could produce a better standard of service.

"Napster simply fills a void left by industry complacency, where else can you find all the 1950s and 1960s number one hits and download them in two minutes (ADSL speed)?", asked one user, who complained that Napster had too many corrupt or truncated files.

"The industry should outrun Napster. Powerful servers, loaded with every track ever recorded. Guaranteed file quality. A resume protocol so that transmission failures can be restarted where they failed... Do it right and charge a sensible price proportionate to the service provided - and Napster will wither on the vine."

In the meantime, Napster has built a formidable user base and many of the discussion participants said they would happily pay for the service, particularly since it allowed them to build their compilation CDs: "I would rather pay Napster for songs I enjoy than a music label $20 for a CD that contains only one song worth listening to."

Despite support from consumers, Napster's future is inextricably linked to its adversaries since the success of a fee-paying business model is wholly dependent on the big five music companies accepting the olive branch and dropping the lawsuit.

Napster said it would pass on $150m a year to the music majors through charging for its service and an additional $50m a year to independent studios, keeping 40 per cent of its revenues and splitting the remaining 60 per cent.

But the offer has received a lukewarm response from the music majors. Many executives have said they expect users to desert the service when songs can no longer be downloaded for free.

Meanwhile, Jean-Marie Messier, head of French media group Vivendi Universal, increased the pressure on Napster by announcing plans to launch a rival online music alliance with Sony of Japan called Duet.

Mr Messier, going head-to-head with Napster, said that the platform would be open to other companies such as EMI and AOL-Time Warner.