Is copying music on your computer illegal?

This radio clip talks about a dispute between the RIAA (recording industry association of America) and an article that was written in the Washington Post. The article states that the RIAA views copying legally a legally purchased CD onto a computer or an MP3 player is unauthorized and subject to a lawsuit. A representative from the RIAA was on the show and cleared this up by saying that it is perfectly acceptable to legally purchase music and upload it onto your computer or MP3 player if it is for personal use but the second it is put into a shared file for others to download then it is considered stealing because it is no longer authorized. From listening to this clip it seems that many record companies instead of looking for new ways to sell music to the public, are simply using the court systems to try to protect themselves and are trying to make a statement. They are just bugging a lot of college students and should be putting their efforts elsewhere that might help them make more money. I agree that if someone buys a CD and puts it on their MP3, it is perfectly legal. I can understand however that once it is shared with millions of people, the record companies see that as stealing. They have lost a lot of money over the past few years to this and must be pretty frustrated about it. I am not sure how this will pan out for these companies because illegal downloading is so popular and so easy and also saved a lot of money for the public. Anyone who tells you that they have not done it themselves is probably lying. I am not an expert in the business of music but it seems that the companies are going to have to do more than just sue people if they want to solve their problems.