Nettwerk Music Group is Canada's leading privately owned record label and artist management company. Nettwerk is responsible for managing some of Canada's biggest artists like Sarah McLachlan, Avril Lavigne, Barenaked Ladies and many others. The label was founded in 1984 by Terry McBride, Mark Jowett, and Ric Arboit in McBride's small Vancouver apartment, initially to release albums by Jowett's band Moev. Additional branches of Nettwerk exist in New York City, Los Angeles, London UK, Boston, Nashville, and Hamburg, Germany. Nettwerk has joined the fight against the RIAA by offering to pay the legal fees of a teenager in Texas who is being sued for downloading songs. They will also pay any fines if they lose the case. They came in contact with the teen when she wrote to MC Lars (who is managed by Nettwerk) about his song, "Download This Song". Nettwerk is one of the first major music companies to abolish DRM releasing songs in the unrestricted MP3 format. Nettwerk is also the first major music company to have their music listed on Amie Street.