Court overturns judgment in copyright infringement lawsuit ordering major labels such as Sony to pay huge compensation of 150 billion yen



On February 20, 2024, a US appeals court overturned a 2019 ruling that held internet service providers (ISPs) liable for copyright infringement by their users.

Cox Communications wins order overturning $1 billion US copyright verdict | Reuters

https://www.reuters.com/legal/cox-communications-wins-order-overturning-1-bln-us-copyright-verdict-2024-02-20/

Major Labels $1 Billion Decision Against Cox Communications Overturned
https://variety.com/2024/music/news/major-labels-billion-cox-communications-overturned-1235917187/

Court blocks $1 billion copyright ruling that punished ISP for its users' piracy | Ars Technica
https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2024/02/court-blocks-1-billion-copyright-ruling-that-punished-isp-for-its-users-piracy/



This case is based on the 2018 case in which 53 music labels, including Sony, sued Cox Communications, an American ISP, alleging that ``ISPs continuing to provide internet services to users who repeatedly infringe copyrights are a copyright violation.'' The lawsuit started.

In this case, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia in 2019 found the ISP liable for 10,17 cases of copyright infringement and ordered Cox to pay $99,830.29 in damages for each case. Commanded Communications.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), a group founded to protect internet freedom, said of the ruling, ``If this ruling is not overturned, ISPs will continue to cut off more and more users to avoid paying huge damages.'' 'Countless people will lose their precious internet access.

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Cox Communications, which was ordered to pay a huge amount of compensation, filed an objection in January 2020, arguing that the amount of compensation was ``unjust, unfair, and outrageous,'' but it was rejected. The case therefore went to the Court of Appeals.

In this ruling, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Virginia, ruled that ``Sony et al. could not prove that Cox Communications directly profited from subscriber copyright infringement.'' Overturned.

Matt Oppenheim, a lawyer for labels such as Sony, pointed out that the lower court's ruling that found Cox Communications a willful copyright infringer was upheld, saying, The evidence remains that they completely ignored the issue.'

On the other hand, a spokesperson for Cox Communications said, ``While we welcome the overturning of the ruling, we cannot agree with the judgment that our company has infringed copyright.Broadband services that support the daily lives of many people The provision of such materials must not be a copyright violation.'



As a result of this appellate court decision, the case will be returned to the district court.

Variety, an entertainment news site, said, ``The appeals court's decision in favor of Cox Communications will be a stepping stone for a retrial.On the other hand, the music industry has filed many similar copyright lawsuits against ISPs. 'This could be a headwind for the music industry.'

in Web Service, Posted by log1l_ks