Judge Rules Against Cox in Copyright Case
25 November 2015 - 12:30PM
Dow Jones News
Copyright laws don't shield a major Internet provider from
liability for illegal music downloading by its subscribers,
according to a ruling in a closely watched case between cable giant
Cox Communications Inc. and two music publishers.
The ruling, by U.S. District Judge Liam O'Grady in Alexandria,
Va., could open the door to more downloading lawsuits against the
cable industry by movie studios and music publishers, according to
some legal experts. The entertainment industry has repeatedly
claimed that illegal theft of songs, movies and TV shows have cost
them billions in lost revenue in recent years.
The brief ruling made earlier this month could also cause
Internet providers to take a harder line with subscribers suspected
of infringing, possibly by suspending or terminating their service
altogether.
"This ruling is potentially very concerning to every user of the
Internet, who may stand substantially less protected than before,"
said Charles Duan, a staff attorney with Public Knowledge, a
Washington, D.C., group that advocates for greater consumer access
to the Internet and other technologies.
Two music companies, BMG Rights Management LLC and Round Hill
Music LP, sued Cox last year, claiming that Cox, which provides
Internet service to millions of people, deliberately turned a blind
eye to illegal downloading by its subscribers. That behavior
violates federal copyright law, BMG and Round Hill claimed in the
lawsuit. The lawsuit is an attempt by the music industry to cut
down on the practice of downloading music without paying, an act it
considers tantamount to theft.
"Cox has repeatedly refused to terminate the accounts of repeat
infringers," argued lawyers for the plaintiffs, in court papers.
"The reason that Cox does not terminate these subscribers and
account holders is obvious—it would cause Cox to lose revenue."
Spokespeople for Cox didn't respond to requests for comment on
Tuesday. In court papers, the company has previously said it had no
"actual" knowledge of any specific infringements, and that the
plaintiffs had no evidence of Cox account holders personally
infringing through their Cox accounts.
The case is expected to go trial next week to determine whether
Cox should be held liable for its alleged role in any infringement,
and, if so, how much it should have to pay.
The lawsuit targets the practice of downloading music via
so-called torrent services, through which two users can easily and
quickly swap files. Rather than go after the torrent sites, which
can be difficult to target through the U.S. legal system, BMG and
Round Hill have chosen to go after Cox, using an untested legal
theory.
A 1998 copyright law, known as the Digital Millennium Copyright
Act, created a "safe harbor" from copyright claims for
Internet-service providers as long as they took certain steps,
like cracking down on customers they suspected ofdownloading
copyrighted material without paying for it.
BMG and Round Hill claim that through an agent called Rightscorp
Inc., they have discovered and told Cox about "hundreds" of
repeat infringers. They allege that Cox failed to do anything in
regard to these customers and has thus given up its safe-harbor
protections under the DMCA.
In the order, Judge O'Grady agreed with the plaintiffs, saying
that Cox essentially failed to set up and enforce a
"repeat-infringer" policy, as required under the law.
At the same time, he cast doubt on whether the smaller of the
two plaintiffs, Round Hill, should be allowed to continue in the
suit, finding that the company didn't own "exclusive" rights to the
copyrights in the case. Round Hill didn't respond to a request for
comment.
Judge O'Grady said he would further explain his findings in a
forthcoming opinion.
But the ruling itself "is quite significant," said Bruce Boyden,
a law professor and copyright expert at Marquette University. Mr.
Boyden said the ruling could force Internet service providers to
take allegations of infringement more seriously and could "up the
stakes" for Internet users.
"It's not like there are always a lot of places to turn [for
service] if your ISP shuts you down," he said.
Write to Ashby Jones at ashby.jones@wsj.com
Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
November 24, 2015 20:15 ET (01:15 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2015 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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