Creative Commons
Kaiser Wahab’s Mar. 24 article “How the Web Has Changed Our Perception of Copyright Law” on Mashable.com discusses the slow pace of legislation and how private and government interests are aggressively “pushing the envelope” to combat the continuing problem of copyright infringement on the Internet.
“Hurt Locker” lawsuits: example of file sharing suits where content creators file claims against individual defendants
- Filed on behalf of producers against thousands of anonymous downloaders
- “U.S. Copyright Group Law” firm subpoenaed ISPs to discover downloaders’ true identities
Courts forced to address following issues:
- Should courts file suits against thousands of geographically disperse defendants?
- Privacy: Do courts have authority to force others/ISPs to reveal defendants’ identities?
- Mass Joinder: Can courts join thousands in a single suit when facts are different for each one?
- Amount/size of monetary awards? — movement to lower damages since many people sued don’t profit from infringement — juries still awarding plaintiffs large settlements
U.S. Government Position:
- “The violent pace at which the Internet can facilitate infringement demands swift and coordinated enforcement.”
- Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)
+ Last year began obtaining warrants to shut down domain names hosting/linking to infringing content/products
+ Raised concerns due to innocent sites being shut down and lack of due process (no notice of seizure warrants)
+ Introduced last year in Senate
+ Allows Attorney General to bring a shut down order against any domain name “dedicated to infringing activities” — how do you define this standard?
Conclusion:
- “Copyright enforcement is the battle front du jour”
- Government expermenting with aggressive enforcement strategies at expense of free speech, due process and fair play
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