Rock giant U2 has developed a plan to thwart music pirates if the band's first album in 4 years is leaked on the Internet prior to its scheduled fall release, according to the band. The band recently reported that a disc containing early versions of several new songs went missing during a promotional photo shot in France, and is believed stolen. If the stolen music happens to leak onto the Internet, U2 will immediately release its album via iTunes and rush the CD to stores as quickly as possible. Many bands have started to use online music stores as promotional tools for new albums, but U2's plan appears to be the first of its kind to thwart piracy of an early release. U2 hopes it can continue working on the album and prepare for a massive promotional campaign for the album's release in the fall, but the band's alternative plan is ready just in case
