Napster has failed to overturn a landmark court ruling which resulted in an injunction blocking website customers from trading copyrighted music.
The Recording Industry Association of America said that the bid to get the case heard again had failed. Analysts had warned over the fallout from a full trial being brought by the music industry giants which have spent 18 months on Napster's trail.
Napster first requested the re-hearing after the US Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit ruled in February that the company was infringing on copyrights and directed US District Court Judge Marilyn Hall Patel to issue an injunction against Napster.
Patel issued the injunction on March 5, barring Napster from allowing the trade of copyrighted songs on its service. The injunction has severely curtailed activity on the service.
The world's biggest record labels, including Vivendi Universal Music, Sony Music, Warner Music AOL, EMI and Bertelsmann, first sued Napster in December 1999, claiming it was a haven for copyright piracy that would cost them billions of dollars in lost music sales.
A US appeals court in February found the firm was infringing on the copyrights held by the music giants, and ordered the issuing of the March injunction.
Napster, which has since introduced new software in an effort to block swapping of copyrighted music, has seen its user figures plummet.
PA