ISP Optimum Questions ‘Evidence’ For Billion Dollar Piracy Lawsuit
Under U.S. copyright law, Internet providers must terminate the accounts of repeat infringers “in appropriate circumstances.” This legal requirement remained largely unenforced for nearly two decades but a series of copyright infringement liability lawsuits, including a billion-dollar damages award against Cox, have shaken up the industry. Music Companies Sue Optimum While Internet terminations are more common today, that hasn’t...
€300m Per Year Rightsholder ‘Private Copying’ Payouts Face Scrutiny
When cassette recorders, VCRs and similar devices hit the mainstream, entertainment companies with business models reliant on customers buying copies faced uncertainty. The fear of consumer copies was encapsulated by the now-famous words of the MPAA’s Jack Valenti: “The VCR is to the American film producer, as the Boston Strangler is to the woman home alone,” Valenti said. With the benefit of hindsight the VCR did more to help than it...
