Recording Industry vs The People

RIAA files its brief on statutory damages in Tenenbaum case

2012-01-27T18:05:00.000-05:00

In SONY BMG Music v Tenenbaum the RIAA has filed its brief on statutory damages.

RIAA memo of law, January 27, 2012

DOJ files brief in SONY v Tenenbaum supporting RIAA

2012-01-27T17:30:00.000-05:00

In SONY BMG Music Entertainment v. Tenenbaum, the Department of Justice, now staffed and supervised by many former RIAA lawyers, has filed a brief supporting the RIAA's position on statutory damages.

Department of Justice January 27, 2012, memo

ReDigi files opposition to Capitol Records preliminary injunction motion

2012-01-27T12:21:00.003-05:00

In Capitol Records v. ReDigi, defendant has filed its opposition to the plaintiff's preliminary injunction motion.

Declaration of John Ossenmacher in opposition to preliminary injunction motion
Declaration of Larry Rudolph in opposition to preliminary injunction motion
Declaration of Ray Beckerman in opposition to preliminary injunction motion
Defendant's memorandum of law in opposition to preliminary injunction motion

Commentary and discussion:

Slashdot

Capitol Records opposes ReDigi summary judgment conference request

2012-01-24T17:09:00.000-05:00

In Capitol Records v. ReDigi, plaintiff has submitted a letter opposing ReDigi's request for a premotion conference in connection with its contemplated summary judgment motion.

January 24, 2012, letter of Richard Mandel to Court

Capitol Records moves for preliminary injunction in ReDigi case

2012-01-21T09:46:00.000-05:00

In Capitol Records v. ReDigi, plaintiff has submitted a request for a preliminary injunction. The Court has directed ReDigi to respond by Friday January 27th at 4:00 pm, and scheduled a conference for February 6th.

January 20, 2012, order scheduling preliminary injunction motion
Plaintiff's declarations
Plaintiff's memorandum of law

ReDigi files answer & requests summary judgment conference in Capitol Records v ReDigi

2012-01-20T10:39:00.002-05:00

In Capitol Records v. ReDigi, defendant has filed its answer, and requested a conference in contemplation of a summary judgment motion.

Answer
January 19th Letter of Morlan Ty Rogers requesting summary judgment premotion conference

Commentary & discussion:

Digital Music News
Aaron Sanders law blog

Capitol Records sues ReDigi in federal court in Manhattan

2012-01-09T19:10:00.008-05:00

On January 6th, Capitol Records filed a copyright infringement lawsuit, in federal court in Manhattan, against ReDigi Inc., a website which provides a used marketplace for digital music.

The judges assigned to the case are U. S. District Judge Richard J. Sullivan and U. S. Magistrate Judge Andrew J. Peck.

Attorneys for plaintiff are Cowan Leibowitz & Latman

Attorneys for defendant are Ray Beckerman, P.C.

Defendant's time to respond to the complaint expires January 27th.

Complaint

Commentary & discussion:

New York Times
Variety
Billboard
Kip Currier Copyright Blog

Jammie Thomas-Rasset's time to file brief extended to February 6th

2012-01-09T16:22:00.000-05:00

In Capitol Records v. Thomas-Rasset, defendant's motion to extend her time to file her brief to February 6th has been granted.

Order extending defendant's time to file brief responding to RIAA's brief

Thomas-Rasset lawyers file consent motion to extend time to file brief

2012-01-06T13:54:00.003-05:00

In Capitol Records v. Jammie Thomas-Rasset, defendant's lawyers have requested a 30-day extension of time in which to file their brief.

Tenenbaum asks District Court not to grant remittitur unless it reduces to statutory minimum

2012-01-03T17:14:00.000-05:00

In SONY BMG Music Entertainment v. Tenenbaum, the first brief was filed by defendant Joel Tenenbaum. His brief appears to argue that the Court should not grant remittitur, unless it reduces the verdict to the statutory minimum.

Defendant's brief after remand

RIAA files appeal brief in Capitol v Thomas-Rasset; MPAA files amicus brief

2012-01-03T14:14:00.004-05:00

In Capitol Records v. Thomas-Rasset, the RIAA has filed its appellate brief, and the MPAA has filed an amicus brief.

The defendant's briefs are presently due to be filed January 6th.

RIAA brief
MPAA Amicus brief

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Actual damages for single unauthorized download of software program held to be cost of single license fee

2011-12-30T09:25:00.003-05:00

In Real View v. 20-20, an "actual damages" copyright infringement case, the Court held that the actual damages for an unauthorized download of a computer program was limited to the cost of an actual license fee, and reduced the jury's much higher verdict accordingly.

The judge, in the District of Massachusetts, granted remittitur, reducing the jury's verdict of $1,370,590.00 to $4,200.00, unless the plaintiff seeks a new trial.

Decision on damages

Commentary & discussion:

Technology & Marketing Law Blog
techdirt

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Florida appeals court rules ripoffreport.com absolutely immune from suit for defamatory posting

2011-12-29T15:00:00.005-05:00

In Giordano v. Romeo, a Florida appeals court has affirmed dismissal of a case in which ripoffreport.com had published an admittedly false and defamatory posting by one of its users, on the ground that under the Communications Decency Act -- 47 USC 230 -- the site is immune from suit for postings by its users as a provider of an "interactive computer service" within the meaning of the statute.

Decision of 3rd District Court of Appeal of Florida

Commentary & discussion:

Technology & Marketing Law Blog
Slashdot

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

Warner Brothers sued for trademark infringement over use of pirated Louis Vitton bag in movie

2011-12-25T15:44:00.004-05:00

Hat tip to Judith Dornstein, Esq., for bringing this to my attention. -R.B.

Louis Vitton has sued Warner Brothers for trademark infringement, for using a knockoff Louis Vitton bag in a movie, "Hangover II":

"Louis Vuitton Sues Warner Bros For Using Fake Bag In Hangover II"

Complaint

Commentary & discussion:

Slashdot

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

In New Sensations v Does 1-1474 Court Orders Dismissal Where Plaintiff Cannot Show Jurisdiction & Venue

2011-12-22T12:38:00.004-05:00

Hat tip to Law Office of Judith C Dorenstein, Esq., from whom I learned of this decision.

In New Sensations v. Does 1-1474 (San Francisco, CA), the Court has ordered the plaintiff to dismiss as to all defendants over whom it can not show that the Court has jurisdiction, and that the venue is proper.

The Court observed that

all of the available information suggests that this Court does not have personal jurisdiction over at least a large number of Doe Defendants named in this action[,]

observing that the general location of each "John Doe" defendant is readily available by checking each's respective IP address on one of many publicly available web sites, and the Court's own preliminary examination of some random defendants suggested that many of them had been wrongly sued in California. The court went on:

given the ease by which the Court located presumptive geographic data for a random selection of IP Addresses in this case, the Court is troubled that Plaintiff has made no attempt to identify those Doe Defendants for whom it has a good faith belief reside in California

Order directing plaintiff to dismiss as to John Doe defendants for whom it cannot make sufficient showing of jurisdiction and venue

[Ed. note] I have been saying, since 2005, that the Courts should not be allowing the John Doe cases to proceed without factual showings of both jurisdiction and venue. See, e.g. Suggestion #2 in my article, which appeared in the ABA Judges Journal "Large Recording Companies v. The Defenseless". I am pleased to see that some judges are applying this basic legal principle. -R.B.]

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9th Circuit affirms judgment dismissing UMG's case against Veoh

2011-12-21T11:26:00.004-05:00

Tip of the hat to Naomi Jane Gray, Esq., of Harvey Siskind LLP, who brought this to our attention.

In UMG Recordings v. Veoh Networks, the decision of the District Court dismissing the case on summary judgment, on the basis of the Digital Millenium Copyright Act, has been affirmed by the Ninth Circuit.

Ninth Circuit Decision Affirming District Court granting of defendants' motion for summary judgment
September 11, 2009, District Court decision

[Ed. Note. Sadly, despite the meritlessness of UMG's case, it was able to force Veoh to spend so much money on legal fees that it succeeded in putting Veoh out of business. The courts need to recognize that merely enforcing the Digital Millenium Copyright Act safe harbor by costly nonsensical litigation of this nature is the same as not enforcing it at all. Few defendants have the money to spend that the RIAA seems content to waste pursuing frivolous claims. -R.B.]

Commentary & discussion:

Ars Technica
Aaron Sanders Law blog

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RIAA files amended complaint in case against Grooveshark, renamed Arista v. Escape Media

2011-12-20T11:37:00.013-05:00

In Arista v. Escape Media, the RIAA has filed an amended complaint. The amendment changes the name of the case from UMG v. Escape Media to Arista v. Escape Media.

(Although we were unable to obtain a copy through PACER, Bloomberg Law Products was kind enough to make a copy available to us.)

Amended Complaint, Arista v. Escape Media
Exhibits part 1
Exhibits part 2
Exhibits part 3
Exhibits part 4

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RIAA files amended complaint in its case against Grooveshark, document not available in PACER

2011-12-18T13:49:00.003-05:00

In the RIAA's case against Grooveshark, UMG v. Escape Media, a complaint was filed on November 18th, and then an amended complaint was filed December 15th. Mysteriously, the amended complaint is not available through PACER. The docket entry says simply:

AMENDED COMPLAINT amending [1] Complaint, against Nikola Arabadjiev, John Ashenden, Escape Media Group, Inc., Paul Geller, Joshua Greenberg, Chanel Munezero, Samuel Tarantino, Benjamin Westermann-Clark.Document filed by UMG Recording, Inc., Atlantic Recording Corporation, Zomba Recording L.L.C., Elektra Entertainment Group Inc., Arista Records LLC, LaFace Records, LLC, Warner Bros. Records Inc., Arista Music, Sony Music Entertainment. Related document: [1] Complaint, filed by UMG Recording, Inc. (mro)

A copy of the original complaint is as follows:

Complaint

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Jon Newton's last post at p2pnet.net

2011-12-16T22:35:00.000-05:00

The great Jon Newton, who has been a tremendous friend to the victims of the RIAA onslaught, and a great friend of this blog, has decided to call it a day in publishing p2pnet.net, due primarily to his health problems in recovering from complications sustained during heart surgery.

Here is his final post at p2pnet:

"last post"

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MegaUpload v. UMG -- file sharing service sues Universal for improper DMCA takedown notice

2011-12-14T09:45:00.002-05:00

A new case has been commenced, in federal court in San Jose, California, by filesharing service MegaUpload, against Universal Music Group, accusing it of issuing an improper DMCA takedown notice to YouTube, for the takedown of a promotional video for which MegaUpload claimed to have cleared all necessary rights.

Complaint

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Briefing schedule set & hearing scheduled for February 22nd in SONY BMG Music v Tenenbaum

2011-12-13T16:27:00.000-05:00

At today's status conference in SONY BMG Music Entertainment v. Tenenbaum, the Court set a briefing schedule, and a February 22nd hearing date.

The Clerk's docket entry reads as follows:

Status Conference held on 12/13/2011; defendants memo 1/3/12; plaintiff's and Goverment's memo 1/27/12; reply 2/6/12; Memo 30 pages; and reply 5 pages; Hearing set for 2/22/2012 02:00 PM in Courtroom 12 before Judge Rya W. Zobel

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Tomorrow's status conference rescheduled for 2:30 pm in SONY BMG Music v Tenenbaum

2011-12-12T13:23:00.000-05:00

In SONY BMG Music Entertainment v. Tenenbaum, the status conference has been rescheduled from 2:45 PM to 2:30 PM.

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SONY BMG Music v Tenenbaum case reassigned, on for conference Dec 13

2011-12-01T15:09:00.000-05:00

In SONY BMG Entertainment v. Tenenbaum, Judge Gertner has retired from the bench, the case has been reassigned to Judge Rya Zobel, a status conference has been scheduled for December 13, 2011, 2:45 PM, in Courtroom 12, and the First Circuit has denied Tenenbaum's motion for rehearing en banc.

[Ed. note. Since the case was remanded for determination of the remittitur motion, and since the remittitur motion has already been fully briefed, it would appear that the next step is for Judge Zobel to render a decision of the remittitur motion. But I'm just guessing :) ~ R.B.]

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Joel Tenenbaum moves for rehearing en banc

2011-11-03T12:29:00.002-04:00

In SONY BMG Music Entertainment v. Tenenbaum, the defendant has filed a petition for rehearing en banc (i.e., a hearing before the full court, instead of just 3 judges).

Petition for rehearing en banc

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1st Circuit declines to reach Due Process issue in SONY v Tenenbaum, reverses & remands for further proceedings #law

2011-09-17T14:11:00.005-04:00

In SONY BMG Music Entertainment v. Tenenbaum, in a 65-page decision, the First Circuit Court of Appeals has declined to decide the issue of whether the jury's award of $22,500 per infringed work was unconstitutional under due process grounds, and remanded the case to Judge Gertner for further proceedings, on the ground that the lower court's ruling on the due process issue was premature.

The court held that under the doctrine of judicial restraint, the trial court is required to first decide the common law remittitur issues, a step with which Judge Gertner had dispensed.

The court noted the longstanding judicial doctrine that constitutional issues should not be reached if they are avoidable. The court gave a few examples of possible scenarios following a remittitur decision which would have dispensed with the need for the district court's decision of of the constitutional question.

(Ed. note. In layman's terms: the 1st Circuit hasn't decided whether the jury's award is excessive or not. Next step is for Judge Gertner to decide whether the jury's award is excessive on "common law", "remittitur" grounds, and if so, by how much. -R.B.)

(Ed. note. Numerous unrelated arguments which had been made by Tenenbaum were rejected. - R.B.)

September 16, 2011, opinion of US Court of Appeals for 1st Circuit

Commentary & discussion:

Techdirt
p2pnet.net
Technology & Marketing Law Blog (Venkat Balasubramani)

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Judge upholds DMCA safe harbor protection for MP3Tunes

2011-08-23T13:17:00.002-04:00

In Capitol Records v. MP3Tunes, Inc., District Judge William H. Pauley has ruled that the digital music locker business of MP3Tunes is protected from copyright infringement claims by the safe harbor provisions of the Digital Millenium Copyright Act.

August 22, 2011, decision, partially granting, and partially denying, summary judgment motions

Commentary & discussion:

Technology & Marketing Law Blog ~ Eric Goldman

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Judge again reduces award to $2250 per infringed work in Capitol Records v Thomas-Rasset

2011-08-22T15:39:00.000-04:00

In Capitol Records v. Jammie Thomas-Rasset, the Court again reduced the verdict to $2250 per infringed work, in a 43-page decision handed down on July 22nd. This time the decision was based on constitutional, due process, grounds.

Judgment was immediately entered in that amount.

Today, the RIAA appealed.

July 22, 2011, decision
RIAA notice of appeal

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"Memo of understanding" between RIAA, MPAA, & which ISP's?

2011-07-10T11:28:00.005-04:00

Thank you to the great Bruce Gain, an excellent investigative tech writer who's covering this subject, for bringing this issue to my attention:

It appears that the RIAA and the MPAA have gotten together and created a collusive "Memorandum of understanding" for ISP's to sign, which calls for the signing ISP's to assist the Big 4 record companies and the Big 6 motion picture companies in enforcing their copyrights, in ways never contemplated by the Digital Millenium Copyright Act

I haven't had time to analyze it yet (it's 36 pages), but at first glance it made me kind of ill, in that it appeared to...

-violate the antitrust laws of the federal government and of various states,
-constitute abuse of copyright,
-expand the lawful copyright monopoly into an unlawful monopoly,
-overlook the First Amendment,
-overlook the fair use defense and other defenses afforded by copyright law,
-conflict with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act,
-be against public policy, and
-contradict net neutrality.

What I'm wondering about is which, if any, ISP's have signed off on this, because I'd want to do my utmost to avoid doing business with them. The document I've seen is unsigned but lists some ISP's. If your ISP is on that list, and does sign, I recommend switching ISP's asap.

What ever happened to "free enterprise"?

Commentary & discussion:

p2pnet.net

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

ABA Journal: LimeWire Settles Infringement Claims for $105M

2011-05-13T12:45:00.000-04:00

According to this report in the ABA Journal, the RIAA's case has been settled for $105 million.

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Jon Newton of p2pnet recovering from open heart surgery

2011-04-07T14:58:00.000-04:00

Our friend Jon Newton of p2pnet is having a rough time recovering from open heart surgery.

If you have any interesting news on subjects near and dear to Jon's heart, please post them here as comments.

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

In Arista v Limewire court holds that prior awards against primary infringers do not bar award against secondary infringer

2011-04-07T13:54:00.000-04:00

In Arista Records v. Lime Wire, the Court has issued a decision holding that the RIAA's prior recoveries against 16 primary infringement defendants, through partial collection of default judgments, with respect to 104 works, did not absolutely bar the recovery of statutory damages against Lime Wire, a secondary infringement defendant, but that the RIAA's prior recoveries would be taken into account by the Court in determining the amount of the statutory damage award against Lime Wire.

April 7, 2011, Decision Denying Defendant's Motion for Partial Summary Judgment as to 104 Works

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Audio of yesterday's oral argument in SONY v Tenenbaum

2011-04-05T12:07:00.001-04:00

Audio recording of yesterday's oral arguments in
SONY BMG Music Entertainment v. Tenenbaum:

http://www.ca1.uscourts.gov/files/audio/10-1883.mp3

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SONY v Tenenbaum appeal to be argued tomorrow morning

2011-04-03T18:12:00.000-04:00

Press release:

Tomorrow morning at 9:30am at Boston's Moakley Courthouse, the First Circuit will hear oral argument on the appeals of Joel Tenenbaum, the Recording Industry Association of America, and the U.S. Department of Justice.

Tenenbaum will be represented by Harvard Law student Jason Harrow. Details at joelfightsback.com.

All three parties appealed after the trial judge reduced a $675,000 jury verdict for sharing 30 songs down to $67,500. The only issues remaining on appeal regard the propriety of such an award for the conduct.

INTERVIEWS ARE AVAILABLE with Charles Nesson, HLS student Jason Harrow, and defendant Joel Tenenbaum. Please email us at joelfightsback@gmail.com or call Debbie Rosenbaum at 314-761-3322 (email preferred) for interview requests.

Best wishes,
The Joel Fights Back Legal Team

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

In Arista v LimeWire court rejects RIAA contention it is entitled to statutory damages for each direct infringer

2011-03-10T19:01:00.001-05:00

In Arista Records v Lime Group, the Court rejected that RIAA's contention that it is entitled to a separate statutory damages award for each direct infringement induced by LimeWire, holding that adopting that argument would lead to an "absurd" interpretation of the Copyright Act. The Court held instead that the RIAA's recovery would be limited to a single statutory damages award per infringed work. The Court also stated, however, that the number of direct infringers would be a factor in assessing the amount of the statutory damage awards.

March 10, 2011, Decision, rejecting RIAA's statutory damages argument

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Over 40,000 Does Dismissed In Copyright Troll Cases

2011-02-25T17:03:00.001-05:00

[Thanks to boingboing for posting about this.]

The Electronic Frontier Foundation reports:

Over 40,000 Does Dismissed In Copyright Troll Cases

News Update by Eva Galperin

These have been some eventful weeks in the world of copyright trolling. Thousands of unnamed “John Does” in P2P file sharing lawsuits filed in California, Washington DC, Texas, and West Virginia have been severed, effectively dismissing over 40,000 defendants. The plaintiffs in these cases must now re-file against almost all of the Does individually rather than suing them en masse.

Complete article

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In new case, Arista v Frawley, defendant moves to dismiss

2011-02-21T20:04:00.001-05:00

In a new case in Albany, against a SUNY Albany student, the defendant has moved to dismiss. The motion is presently pending.

Defendant's memorandum of law
RIAA's opposition memorandum of law
Defendant's reply memorandum of law

Defendant is represented by Richard A. Altman, of Manhattan.

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

Appellate briefs filed in SONY v Tenenbaum

2011-02-21T19:39:00.000-05:00

SONY BMG Music Entertainment v. Tenenbaum, where the RIAA appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, despite being awarded $2250 for each download, for a total of $67,500, and where Tenenbaum cross appealed on the ground that the $67,500 was excessive, in view of the actual damages being less than a dollar per download, the parties have filed their respective appellate briefs.

RIAA brief
Tenenbaum brief
Amicus Brief of Electronic Frontier Foundation
RIAA reply brief
Tenenbaum reply brief

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

RIAA & US Dept of Justice file briefs in Capitol v Thomas

2011-02-21T19:11:00.001-05:00

In Capitol Records v. Thomas-Rasset, the RIAA and the US Department of Justice have filed briefs opposing defendant's motion to reduce the jury's award of $1,500,000 -- or $62,500 per mp3 single downloaded.

RIAA's opposition brief
Department of Justice's opposition brief

[Ed. note. It should be noted that the RIAA's primary copyright litigation lawyers are now high ranking members of the US Department of Justice. -R.B.]

Commentary & discussion:

Obama FCC Caves on Net Neutrality -- Today's Betrayal Assured

2010-12-21T08:45:00.002-05:00

According to this report from CommonDreams.org, the FCC has not stood firm on President Obama's pledge to preserve net neutrality, but has succumbed to lobbyist pressure.

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

EFF: Judge Blocks Copyright Trolls in Porn-Downloading Lawsuits

2010-12-17T15:24:00.000-05:00

Press release from Electronic Frontier Foundation:

Judge Blocks Copyright Trolls in Porn-Downloading Lawsuits
Orders Film Companies to Stop Abusing the Law When Suing Accused File-Sharers

San Francisco - In a big victory in the fight against copyright trolls, a judge in West Virginia has blocked an attempt to unmask accused file sharers in seven predatory lawsuits involving the alleged illegal downloading of pornography. The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), working with Charles J. Kaiser of Phillips, Gardill, Kaiser & Altmeyer, PLLC, filed an amicus brief in the case, arguing that the film companies were abusing the law in an attempt to pressure settlements.

Jammie Thomas-Rasset files motion to reduce judgment

2010-12-09T17:56:00.001-05:00

In Capitol Records v. Thomas-Rasset, defendant has filed a motion to reduce the judgment from $62,500 per song file to zero, due to the absence of any evidence in the record that plaintiffs sustained any actual damage.

Defendant's motion to reduce judgment

In other developments in the case, (a) Prof. Charles Nesson's motion for leave to file an amicus curiae brief was denied, and (b) the RIAA filed a motion asking the Court to add an injunction to the judgment.

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MediaSentry: still operating illegally in Oz ~ @p2pnet

2010-12-02T11:22:00.000-05:00

Our friend Jon Newton at p2pnet.net advises that Media Sentry is still operating, doing its dirty tricks, in Australia.

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Judge requires plaintiff to show basis for jurisdiction in Achte/Neunte v Does 1-4577

2010-11-21T16:11:00.008-05:00

Thank you to Slashdot and Slyck for bringing this most recent ruling to my attention.

In Achte/Neunte v. Does 1-4577, one of the mass file sharing "John Doe" cases, involving motion pictures, following the RIAA model, the judge has ruled that the plaintiff is required to show a basis for suing defendants in the District of Columbia court.

The ruling came about in the context of an order partially granting plaintiff's motion to extend time to serve defendants.

Order partially granting motion for extension of time to make service

The defendants who'd opposed the motion were represented by:

Carey N. Lening of Washington, D.C.
Christina A. DiEdoardo of San Francisco, California
Tuna Mecit of Washington, D.C., and
Bradford A. Patrick of Tampa, Florida

Opposition memorandum

The Court has previously denied various motions to quash in this case. See, e.g.

Order denying motion to quash (9/10/10)
Order denying motion to quash (11/18/10)

The Court has also granted Time Warner a partial protective order:

Order granting Time Warner limited protective order

And the Court has ruled that the defendants -- who are seeking to preserve their anonymity -- may not proceed anonymously. I.e., any defendant who wants to try to prevent Time Warner from disclosing his or her name and address to the plaintiff must disclose his name and address to the plaintiff. [?!]

Order requiring John Does to disclose their identities in order to participate in the litigation

[Ed. note. It's about time a judge has woken up to the lack of personal jurisdiction in the John Doe cases. I've been pointing out this injustice for the past 5 years. It's outrageous to be suing the "John Doe" defendants hundreds or thousands of miles away from where they reside. Why have so many judges, including Judge Collyer, ignored that issue to date? -R.B.]

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

Music Dish: One Down, Three To Go: The Music Biz Shrinks Yet Again, as Courts Close EMI

2010-11-15T22:17:00.000-05:00

Interesting article on "Music Dish":

One Down, Three To Go: The Music Biz Shrinks Yet Again, as Courts Close EMI
EMI has lost in court and it's now only a matter of time before its assets are chopped up
By Moses Avalon

It's official, EMI has lost in court and it's now only a matter of time before its assets are chopped up, dispersed and the famous Capital Records building in Hollywood goes condo. After EMI is dismantled there will remain only WMG, UNI and Sony as the remaining "Big Three" labels in the US and the UK.

The Silicon Valley giants are probably very excited today, since this means that there are only three major record distributors left to destroy before they can finally buy up their catalogs and not have to deal with the RIAA or their stupid one-sided interpretation of the Copyright Act.

Yes, this is great day indeed for those who think music should be free. Because the Beatles recordings along with Led Zeppelin, Rolling Stones, and many others will probably soon be the property of an ISP giant, or computer company who will use them as loss leader to attract subscribers.

Reply brief filed by amicus curiae on jury instruction issue in Capitol v Thomas-Rasset

2010-11-04T15:42:00.002-04:00

In Capitol Records v. Thomas-Rasset, amicus curiae Prof. Charles Nesson had filed a reply brief on the jury instruction issue.

Amicus reply brief

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

Jury awards $1.5 million in Jammie Thomas case

2010-11-04T12:51:00.012-04:00

In the damages retrial in Capitol Records v. Thomas-Rasset, which concluded yesterday, after the Judge refused to instruct the jurors that the amount of the award was required to bear a reasonable relationship to the actual damages sustained by plaintiffs, the jury returned a verdict of $62,500 per song, for a total of $1.5 million.

The Judge has previously ruled that the maximum allowable amount in the case is $54,000.

Court minutes
Verdict

[Ed. note. No surprises here, given the contents of the jury instructions and verdict form. The only surprises are that (a) the judge felt it necessary to have a predictably futile third trial, (b) the judge refused to instruct the jury that the statutory damages must bear a reasonable relationship to the actual damages, which is a fundamental tenet of the law regarding copyright infringement, and (c) the judge has so far declined to reach the constitutional issue which is staring him in the face. It also seems odd to me that the judge had not instructed the jury that plaintiffs had proved a copying -- i.e. a download -- but not a "distribution" as defined in the Copyright Act. -R.B.]

Commentary & discussion:

p2pnet
slashdot
ars technica
Los Angeles Times
p2pnet.net
Electronic Frontier Foundation

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

According to court records Capitol v Thomas-Rasset damages retrial commenced yesterday, continued today

2010-11-03T14:17:00.000-04:00

According to court records, the damages retrial in
Capitol Records v. Thomas-Rasset commenced yesterday and was continued today, Prof. Nesson was granted leave to file an amicus brief, and the RIAA filed a responding brief.

Nesson amicus brief
RIAA response

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

Prof. Nesson admitted pro hac vice in Capitol v Thomas-Rasset

2010-11-01T11:39:00.001-04:00

In the Minnesota case Capitol Records v. Thomas-Rasset, law school professor Charles Nesson, who represents Joel Tenenbaum, in a Massachusetts case, has been admitted pro hac vice to assist in representing defendant. The defendant's lawyers are former students of his. I have been informed that the trial is scheduled to start tomorrow -- November 2nd [election day?!]

In addition,

-Prof. Nesson filed an amicus brief;
-the brief was rejected by the court due to no motion for leave to file having been made; and
-Prof. Nesson thereafter made a motion for leave to file.

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

Article in @p2pnet about my interview with @copygrounds

2010-10-31T18:52:00.001-04:00

Jon Newton of p2pnet.net writes about the website, copygrounds (@copygrounds on Twitter), and its interview with me:

Ray Beckerman Talks to Copygrounds

Ray Beckerman’s Recording Industry vs The People blog is the only online repository of legal documents surrounding the RIAA Sue ‘Em All cases.

p2pnet coined the Sue ‘Em All phrase for the first time back in 2003 when the RIAA spearheaded Big Music’s ongoing campaign to gain control of how, and by whom, music is distributed online.

The music ‘trade’ organisation claimed then, and claims now, that files shared equal sales lost. But the contention has never been even nearly demonstrated or supported and in fact, a number of academic and other studies have put it to the lie.

Complete article at p2pnet
Complete interview at copygrounds

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

Radio Berkman 166: An Innocent Infringer? Prof Nesson, Kiwi Camara, & Whitney Harper

2010-10-31T18:34:00.001-04:00

Podcast about innocent infringement. Whitney Harper, Prof. Charles Nesson, and Kiwi Camara:

"Radio Berkman 166: An Innocent Infringer?"

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

MP3Tunes moves for summary judgment dismissing RIAA case

2010-10-31T16:33:00.000-04:00

In Capitol Records v. MP3Tunes, the defendants have moved for summary judgment dismissing the case.

Defendants' memorandum of law in support of motion for summary judgment

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

Had a great time at "Reaching Acc[h]ord" at St John's Law School

2010-10-29T19:03:00.001-04:00

Ty Rogers and I had a great time at the "Reaching Acc[h]ord" program at my alma mater, St. John's University School of Law.

I got to meet, for the very first time in person, two great guys: Prof. Charles Nesson and Joel Tenenbaum

And we were treated to an incredible performance by indie singer/songwriter Jake Walden (@jakewalden on Twitter):

RIAA files its brief in First Circuit in SONY BMG Music Entertainment v Tenenbaum

2010-10-28T17:29:00.000-04:00

In SONY BMG Music Entertainment v. Tenenbaum, the RIAA has filed its appellate brief seeking to overturn the judgment of the District Court which on constitutional due process grounds reduced the jury's verdict from $675,000 to $67,500.

RIAA appellate brief

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

Lime Wire consent injunction entered

2010-10-27T17:21:00.001-04:00

In Arista Records v. LimeWire, a consent injunction has been entered.

A consent injunction is an injunction which is agreed to by both sides.

Under the injunction, LimeWire is required to cease using its old software, and is permitted to develop new software.

The injunction leaves open the question of damages, and provides that if any defendant is later exonerated on appeal, the injunction would no longer be applicable to that defendant.

Consent injunction

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

"Reaching Acc[h]ord: Resolving Disputes Over Music Downloading" Panel Disc/CLE program-St Johns Law 10/29

2010-10-23T14:28:00.002-04:00

I will be participating in the following CLE Program and Panel Discussion on Friday, October 29th, 9 AM - 3 PM, at St. John's University School of Law, in Jamaica, Queens:

"Reaching Acc[h]ord: Resolving Disputes Over Music Downloading"

October 29, 2010 9:00 AM - 2:00 PM
Law School | Belson Moot Court Room | 2nd Floor

The Hugh L. Carey Center for Dispute Resolution, together with the Law School's Dispute Resolution Society and Entertainment, Arts and Sports Law Society, presents:

Reaching Acc[h]ord: Resolving Disputes Over Music Downloading

* Charles S. Nesson | Harvard Law School professor and counsel to Joel Tenenbaum
* Joel Tennenbaum | Boston University student initially found liable for over $600,000 in damages for unauthorized music downloading
* Ray Beckerman | Respected entertainment attorney and blogger on the topic of music downloading
* Jake Walden | Independent recording artist.
* Cathy Constantino | Conflict Management System Design Expert

Date
Friday, October 29, 2010

Time
9 a.m. - 2 p.m.

Location
School of Law | Belson Moot Court Room | Second Floor

Fee
$25 entry fee
Free admission for law students with valid Law School ID

Registration
Please register at specialevents@stjohns.edu by Wednesday, October 27, 2010

More Information
Maureen Mulligan
Associate Director of Special Events
(718) 990-1950
mulligam@stjohns.edu

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

In Jammie Thomas case, Judge Davis refuses to consider constitutional issue; 3rd trial to commence Nov 1

2010-10-23T13:51:00.000-04:00

In Capitol Records v. Thomas-Rasset, Judge Davis has denied defendant's motion for reconsideration, which asked the judge to determine the issue of the constitutionality of the award under on due process grounds. Presumably this means the third trial will commence, as scheduled, on November 1st.

Department of Justice Opposition Papers
RIAA Opposition Papers
October 22, Decision, Denying Reconsideration, Declining to Rule on Constitutional Issue

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

Jammie Thomas moves for Court to consider constitutional due process issue

2010-10-20T10:28:00.003-04:00

In Capitol Records v. Thomas-Rasset, the defendant has filed a motion for reconsideration requesting the Court to now reach the constitutional due process issue which it had declined to reach in its prior decision setting aside the verdict on the ground of remittitur, but not on the basis of due process.

Defendant submitted Judge Gertner's decision in SONY v. Tenenbaum, and pointed out to the Court that a third trial in the Thomas case would likely reach the same result as the first two trials.

Defendant's motion for reconsideration

Commentary & discussion:

p2pnet

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

Judge Davis refuses request for "reasonable damages" instruction in Capitol v Thomas-Rasset

2010-10-20T10:17:00.000-04:00

In Capitol Records v. Thomas-Rasset, Judge Davis has refused to instruct the jury that their statutory damages award must bear a reasonable relationship to the actual damages, and is instructing the jury that the defendant has violated the plaintiffs' distribution right.

October 13, 2010, Decision
Court's proposed jury instructions

[Ed. note In view of the jury instructions the judge is planning to give, it seems highly likely that the jury is going to feel compelled to once again come in with an award that is somewhere between $750 and $150,000 per work. I think the judge has erred once again. The jury will, apparently, not be able to consider the facts that (a) there was no evidence of a "distribution" within the meaning of the Copyright Act, and (b) plaintiffs' actual damages are in the neighborhood of 5 cents per work. And will not be instructed that its statutory damages award should be reasonable. How on earth can the judge have a problem with instructing the jury as to a long standing principle of copyright law, that statutory damages are required to bear a reasonable relationship to the actual damages. Sad. Very sad. -R.B.]

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

RIAA files brief opposing petition for certiorari in Maverick Recording v Harper

2010-10-20T09:56:00.001-04:00

In Maverick Recording Co. v. Harper, the RIAA has filed its response to the petition for certiorari:

RIAA response in opposition to petition for certiorari

h/t Copyrights & Campaigns

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

Irish ISP wins major legal victory against record labels

2010-10-11T13:44:00.001-04:00

Interesting news from TechEYE.net:

Irish ISP wins major legal victory against record labels
No legal precedent in Irish law for disconnection

UPC, one of Ireland's largest internet service providers, has won a major legal victory against four of the world's most powerful record companies over the much-contested issue of online music piracy.

The High Court in Dublin ruled today that there was no precedent in Irish law to force ISPs to identify and disconnect people accused of illegally downloading copyrighted files, which means that despite the record companies requests, UPC will not be required to take part in the three strikes programme that had been on the table for some time now.

Warner Music, Universal Music, Sony BMG and EMI Records wanted a three strikes system that would including an informal warning at the first stage, designed to highlight the problem, a stern written warning at the second stage, threatening disconnection, and then a disconnection for seven days at the third stage. If a user continues to break the rules disconnection for a full year may follow.

"Monetizing the Band" - October 12th program hosted by New York Law School #music #musicians

2010-10-08T10:58:00.005-04:00

New York Law School is holding “Monetizing the Band.”

This event will instruct practictioners, law students and other interested parties in the art of making a band a money-making entity. We will be meeting with members of actual working bands, booking agents, artist managers, web 2.0 experts, merchandise professionals, publishing companies, licensing companies and independent record labels.

After the panels, there will be a general networking session.

This event is sponsored by Esq. Bank.

Please rsvp at brian.daitzman@law.nyls.edu

Tuesday, October 12 2010. Check in begins at 6pm. Must RSVP.
@New York Law School for Tuesday, October 12 2010 for the night in room W201 at 185 W. Broadway Campus NY, NY.

Here is the program:

The band panel will begin at 6:30pm

Jonny Dubowsky (Rock & Renew/Jonny Lives!)
Kenyon Philips (Unisex Salon)
Ezra Huleat (Black Taxi)
Erica Quitzow (Young Love Records/Quitzow)
Josh Hoisington (The Stationary Set)
Maya Azucena (Maya Azucena)

Industry Panel 7:30

Adam Shore (The Daily Swarm)
Natalia Nataskin (Agency Group Lawyer)
Jeremy Holgersen (Agency Group)
Justin Shukat (Primary Wave Music)
Peter Shukat (Lawyer)
Mark Weiss (Artist Arena)
David Mazur (Masur Law)
Adrian Perry (Tab the band/ Weil)
Barry Heyman (Heyman Law)
Adam Jordan (Rely Records)
Jake Ottman (EMI)
Veronica Gretton (Independent Manager + Publisher)
Rob Shore (Business Manager)
Ray Beckerman (Lawyer)

Bios of panel members (pdf)

Brian Daitzman, JD
http://www.linkedin.com/in/briandaitzman

(Short URL for this post: http://bit.ly/a5U4mL)

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

Supreme Court asks RIAA to respond to petition for certiorari in Maverick v Harper

2010-09-22T09:59:00.007-04:00

In Maverick Recording Co v. Harper, the US Supreme Court has asked the RIAA to submit a response to the petition for certiorari, according to this report in p2pnet.

The RIAA had initially waived its right to respond.

This is the case in which the 5th Circuit had held that the innocent infringement defense is barred as a matter of law, even if the infringed copy bears no copyright notice, any time the recording in question has corresponding copies on sale in record stores which do bear a copyright notice.

[Ed. note. The 5th Circuit's ruling was ludicrous, and deserves to be unceremoniously reversed. The Supreme Court's request for a response from the RIAA at this juncture suggests that the high court has picked up on the 5th Circuit's flagrant mistake. -R.B.]

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

Trial date changed to November 1st in Capitol Records v Thomas-Rasset

2010-09-21T20:00:00.000-04:00

In Capitol Records v. Thomas-Rasset, the trial date has been changed to November 1st.

Order setting November 1st trial date

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

Dept of Justice Joins in and files Appeal in SONY v Tenenbaum

2010-09-03T17:02:00.001-04:00

In SONY BMG Music Entertainment v. Tenenbaum, the US Department of Justice, which intervened in the proceedings below, has filed a notice of appeal.

Notice of Appeal by DOJ

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

Comments deleted

2010-08-15T11:56:00.000-04:00

Blogger.com recently changed its "comment moderation" format. I, not understanding it, wound up accidentally deleting 50 or 75 of the most recent published comments.

Sorry about that.

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

EFF offers assistance to victims of new wave of "John Doe" copyright lawsuits

2010-08-06T14:50:00.003-04:00

If you or anyone you know is a "John Doe" in the new wave of copyright infringement lawsuits based on single downloads of a movie, the Electronic Frontier Foundation's new Subpoena Defense Page provides information and links to attorneys who have "voluntarily offered assistance" in fighting the initial, discovery phase lawsuit:

Subpoena Defense Resources

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

Judge cancels settlement mediation in Capitol Records v Thomas, at request of both sides

2010-08-04T17:26:00.000-04:00

In Capitol Records v. Thomas, the Judge has cancelled settlement mediation, at the request of both sides.

Order cancelling mediation

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

Joel Tenenbaum files appeal from judgment

2010-07-30T14:24:00.000-04:00

In SONY BMG Music Entertainment v. Tenenbaum, the defendant has filed a notice of appeal.

So now both sides have initiated their appeal, and the fireworks can begin.

Defendant's notice of appeal

[Ed. note. My prediction: if appeals court reaches constitutional question, it will agree that due process standards as enunciated by Judge Gertner are applicable, but will remand for proper computation of (a) approximate actual damages and (b) proper multiple of actual damages. Court will reject lower court's application of multiple of minimum statutory damages, instead of multiple of actual damages. -R.B.]

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

Indie music promoter @JessicaNorthey interviews me on "Finger Candy Media" website

2010-07-30T10:08:00.001-04:00

Social media maven, indie music promoter, and all around great lady, @JessicaNorthey, has posted an interview of me on the Finger Candy Media website:

Law+Twitter+Music+Nature+Friendship= @RayBeckerman

Meet Ray Beckerman, to quote his own Twitter Bio: “Law, social justice, nature, human & animal rights, arts, ecology, indie music & film”

If you are on Twitter and you pay attention to who really connects with others, gives back and actually makes the community/ecosystem better, then you are no doubt aware of Ray Beckerman! If you haven’t heard of him, he is an ambassador of what Social Media is all about.....

ABA Journal: $17M for Legal Fees Is Money Well Spent, RIAA Says

2010-07-29T10:27:00.001-04:00

Interesting article in the ABA Journal today:

$17M for Legal Fees Is Money Well Spent, RIAA Says

Posted Jul 29, 2010 6:00 AM CDT
By Debra Cassens Weiss

The Recording Industry Association of America is defending more than $17 million spent on legal fees in 2008 after bloggers claimed the organization’s aggressive pursuit of damages for illegal downloading was yielding little legal in the way of legal recoveries.

Complete article

Commentary & discussion:

RIAA appeals from SONY v Tenenbaum judgment

2010-07-22T10:38:00.001-04:00

In SONY BMG Music Entertainment v. Tenenbaum, the RIAA has appealed from the judgment awarding it $67,500 for defendant's downloading of 30 mp3 song files.

RIAA's notice of appeal

Commentary & discussion:

ZeroPaid
Ars Technica

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

Both sides ask court to dispense with settlement mediation in Capitol Records v Thomas-Rasset

2010-07-15T10:32:00.000-04:00

In Capitol Records v. Thomas-Rasset, both sides have filed a joint motion to be relieved of their obligation to proceed to mediation under a Special Master.

Joint Motion for Relief from order directing settlement mediation under Special Master

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

An afterthought about the RIAA's financial "disclosures"

2010-07-15T09:24:00.011-04:00

The amounts of money the RIAA spent on legal fees from 2006 to 2008 -- approximately $20,000,000 per year -- were in the ballpark with my estimates (I'd estimated $15,000,000).

But the amounts collected from the settlements were not; they were far lower. I would have expected the RIAA to have been collecting in the neighborhood of $5,000,000 per year during that period, rather than a mere $450,000 per year.

What if my estimates were correct, and 90% of the moneys collected were siphoned off to the Big 4 record labels who were the plaintiffs?

If so, it would mean the RIAA was spending general membership money to help just a few of its members.

But that would raise problems with

(a) the Internal Revenue Service, and

(b) the RIAA membership.

So it must not be the case. Right?

Just askin'.

If the RIAA lawyers out there could clarify this for me, I'd appreciate it. I understand the ABA Journal has asked you to comment, but you haven't responded yet.

Commentary & discussion:

Ha ha ha ha ha. RIAA paid its lawyers more than $16,000,000 in 2008 to recover only $391,000!!!

2010-07-13T11:26:00.052-04:00

Big hat tip to my friend Jon Newton at p2pnet.net for uncovering these documents.

The RIAA's "business plan" is even worse than I'd guessed it was.

The RIAA paid Holmes Roberts & Owen $9,364,901 in 2008, Jenner & Block more than $7,000,000, and Cravath Swain & Moore $1.25 million, to pursue its "copyright infringement" claims, in order to recover a mere $391,000. [ps there were many other law firms feeding at the trough too; these were just the ones listed among the top 5 independent contractors.]

Embarrassing.

If the average settlement were $3,900, that would mean 100 settlements for the entire year.

As bad as it was, I guess it was better than the numbers for 2007, in which more than $21 million was spent on legal fees, and $3.5 million on "investigative operations" ... presumably MediaSentry. And the amount recovered was $515,929.

And 2006 was similar: they spent more than $19,000,000 in legal fees and more than $3,600,000 in "investigative operations" expenses to recover $455,000.

So all in all, for a 3 year period, they spent around $64,000,000 in legal and investigative expenses to recover around $1,361,000.

Shrewd.

No wonder they get paid the big bucks

Commentary & discussion:

p2pnet.net
p2pnet.net
Slyck
Slashdot
Download Squad
Boing Boing
LeMonde (French)
Ars Technica
Business Insider
Tech Blog
reddit
Hacker News
Ferrett's Journal: Dinosaurs Must Die
opassande.se (Swedish)
bannination.com
ZeroPaid
digg
digg
winfuture (German)
OWNIlive (French)
metafilter
wearethemusicmakers
vnboards
phog..net
ComputerWorld
tribalwar
dailyswarm
TechDirt
Sitar Teli
gizmodo
drudge retort
bomb the music industry
dallas imports
maximumpc
sluniverse
torrentfreak
paste magazine
techmeme
betanews
tech eye
geek.com
NewLaunches.com
overclock.net
rage3d
linux today
trendalicious
whatreallyhappened.com
icerocket.com
ebusiness.info (French)
the present and future of post production business and technology
outerspace (Portugese)
habrahabr (Russian)
Hard Forum
Southern Maryland Online
GarrettWalker.com/Today
computeridee (Dutch)
gamevicio (Portugese)
The Big Lead
Lenta.ru (Russian)
AltDaily
HypeBot
Daily Online Examiner
Forte (Swedish?)
Jaakko Koivula blog (Finnish)
Tech News Today 31
Inside STL (top "Fail" of the day)
nezinau.lt (Lithuanian?)
switched
adslgr.com (Russian)
EfectoTequila (Spanish)
fyeahqueermusic
adslzone (Spanish)
metal insider
intern.de (German)
ABA Journal
ITProPortal
pcinpact (French)

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

$675,000 verdict reduced to $67,500 in SONY v Tenenbaum

2010-07-09T14:35:00.008-04:00

In SONY BMG Music Entertainment v. Tenenbaum, the Court has reduced the jury's award from $675,000, or $22,500 per infringed work, to $67,500, or $2,250 per infringed work, on due process grounds, holding that the jury's award was unconstitutionally excessive.

In a 64-page decision, District Judge Nancy Gertner ruled that:

-to decide the issue on common law remittitur grounds would not have avoided the constitutional question, since plaintiffs had indicated they would not accept a "remitted" award, but would instead proceed to a second trial in the event of remittitur;
-the award of $22,250 per infringed work could not withstand scrutiny under the Due Process Clause and was unconstitutionally excessive;
-$2,250 per infringed work was the maximum amount that the Constitution would permit given the facts of this case;
-the Gore, Campbell, and Williams line of cases was applicable to determining the constitutionality of statutory damages awards
-statutory damages must bear a reasonable relationship to the actual damages
-the actual damages sustained by plaintiffs was no more than $30
-the benefit to the defendant was in the neighborhood of $1500
-it was permissible to treble the minimum statutory damages due to defendant's wilfulness

Decision reducing jury verdict from $675,000 to $67,500

[Ed. note. Since the Court concluded that the actual damages were ~ $1 per work, or $30 total, I don't understand how it arrived at the conclusion that an award of 2250 times that amount passes constitutional muster. -R.B.]

Commentary & discussion:

Slashdot
p2pnet.net
ZeroPaid

Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player