The band and the software company released a press release on the 12th of July where Lars Ulrich said: "I think we've resolved this in a way that works for fans, recording artists and songwriters alike, Our beef hasn't been with the concept of sharing music; everyone knows that we've never objected to our fans trading tapes of our live concert performances. The problem we had with Napster was that they never asked us or other artists if we wanted to participate in their business. We believe that this settlement will create the kind of enhanced protection for artists that we've been seeking from Napster. We await Napster's implementation of a new model which will allow artists to choose how their creative efforts are distributed. It's good that they're going legit."

Metallica has agreed to allow the sharing of certain of their material from time to time once an acceptable model is in place that ensures payment to artists and publishers for the use of their works. You can read the complete press release here