People formerly known as Prince fans hit back

POP STAR Prince was one of the first to embrace the brave new world of music marketing. He sold music directly to fans via his website and this summer gave away his latest album for free with the Mail on Sunday.
But now he's made enemies of some of his biggest fans by threatening to sue three fan websites for breach of copyright over the use of his photographs, lyrics and album covers. A lawyer's letter asks the fansites to provide "substantive details of the means by which you propose to compensate our clients for damages". Fans are furious, claiming it's a form of censorship. They say the "cease and desist" notices went as far as demanding the removal of pictures taken by fans themselves of Prince tattoos and vehicles carrying Prince-inspired licence plates. "It's really short-sighted and futile," says Nicola Slade, editor of the industry newsletter Record of the Day. "Prince has got a lot of fans and as he's decided to take a more left-field approach to releasing his material, he should be nurturing the relationship." ·