In a move that makes the Napster controversy look like comparatively nothing at all, European composers and record companies are going after another aspect of allegedly unauthorized copying, the personal computer.

For example, according to published reports, in Germany copyright societies representing the entertainment and publishing industries are trying to get flat fees instituted on all the sale of each of the components in home computers that are used to copy, or burn, music onto compact discs, as well as computer hard drive disks, image scanners, and printers.

Naturally, when these levies are passed, and don’t doubt that in some form they will be, manufacturers, being the wonderful business people that they are, will pass the cost along to consumers.

And, American businesses being the imitators that they are, will probably try to pick up on the tariff, creating still another pitched battle on the home taping front, just as Napster moves off the center of the legal radar screen.

The European charges, which published estimates say may be as high as $80 per computer, will apply even if the computer is not used to copy music. The expected fees will add up to an estimated $500 million a year in Germany alone, where courts are already upholding demands for charges on stand-alone CD burners.

Other European countries are following suit, and, in a nod to the Metallica’s war against Napster, many European pop music stars are lining up to support demands for higher fees on blank computer diskettes and other recording equipment.

What is really interesting about this trend is that, in Europe, unlike America, most countries already have laws on the books, or more informal, industry agreements that are enforced in the marketplace, that impose copyright fees on audio and videocassette recorders, blank tapes and disks. The fees are collected by government-regulated copyright groups, similar to ASCAP and BMI in this country, and are then distributed back to record companies.

Of course, musicians and other artists in Europe, like their American counterparts, claim that these fees will target the large scale bootlegging operations, whom, the artists claim, copy and sell thousands upon thousands of illegal compact disks throughout Europe and the world. They dismiss the argument that such fees are burdensome to the small traders who may copy a favorite CD and/or songs and give it or trade it to a friend.

Clearly, heavy duty bootlegging of compact disks is a major thorn to these artists, who believe, probably correctly, that they are losing serious bucks for the unauthorized sale of the illegal disks. Frankly, no one in the industry, or consumers, can make the argument that these massive sales are in any way legal.

However, as usual, it’s gonna be the little guy who gets squeezed. And, it’s that little guy who is the first one to turn his or her friends onto a favorite group or singer, presumably getting that friend to purchase the artist’s latest or catalog music, thereby increasing its sales, after first hearing a copied disk or a downloaded song.

In this country, there was a fairly strong backlash to Metallica’s squashing of Napster. It may only a little dent in the industry’s heavy metal machine, but it’s a start. Unfortunately, the combination of a government and industry agreement will undoubtedly increase the costs and make it more and more difficult to download and trade music.

So, burn and swap now, while you still can.