TorrentFreak's Latest News

ISP Optimum Questions 'Evidence' For Billion Dollar Piracy LawsuitErnesto Van der Sar, 22 Nov 10:38 PM Under U.S. copyright law, Internet providers

ISP Optimum Questions 'Evidence' For Billion Dollar Piracy Lawsuit Ernesto Van der Sar, 22 Nov 10:38 PM 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 stopped the lawsuits. Last December, a group of music rightsholders including BMG, UMG, and Capitol filed a complaint at the Eastern District of Texas, accusing Optimum's parent company Altice USA of facilitating massive copyright infringement. The pirating activity of subscribers shouldn't be a surprise for the ISP, plaintiffs argued, as the company received numerous copyright infringement notices. This included those sent by the tracking company Rightscorp, which were paired with settlement demands. "Rather than work with Plaintiffs or take other meaningful or effective steps to curb this massive infringement, Altice chose to permit infringement to run rampant, prioritizing its own profits over the Plaintiffs' rights," the complaint read. To make the music companies whole, they demanded roughly a billion dollars in damages and an order requiring Optimum to prevent repeat copyright infringements on its network going forward. Questioning the Evidence Optimum's parent company fiercely denies the allegations and argues that it's protected by the DMCA's safe harbor. To mount a proper defense, the ISP is conducting discovery for the upcoming trial, showing particular interest in Rightscorp's piracy evidence. Specifically, the ISP believes that the reliability and accuracy of Rightscorp's detection system are central to its defense. Thus far, however, the piracy tracking company has failed to hand over all requested information. To force the matter, Altice submitted a motion to compel Rightscorp to comply with the subpoenaed information. In its request, the company also scolds the music companies for trying to turn ISPs into copyright police, while characterizing Rightscorp's copyright notices as 'spam'. "This case is the latest attempt by the music industry to engineer a copyright-liability regime that makes ISPs responsible for all infringement that takes place on the internet—and thereby turn ISPs into their de facto enforcers. "Rightscorp intentionally sends out millions of notices a year, and includes threatening settlement demands therein, as it stands to gain a portion of each settlement received as a result of each notice. In reality, the volume of these notices is so high that it risks crippling Altice's systems," the motion adds. More Information Needed If the music companies want to hold Optimum liable for the copyright infringements of its subscribers, the ISP wants to review all underlying evidence in detail. Although Rightscorp has handed over some information, including notices and spreadsheets with metadata, the ISP seeks more. For example, Rightscorp should be able to share information on its agreements with the music company plaintiffs, assessments of the accuracy of its piracy detection system, documents related to settlements with the ISP's customers, and more. "Given that the notices are at the center of the lawsuit between the Plaintiffs and Altice, Altice is seeking evidence concerning the accuracy and reliability of Rightscorp's systems for detecting infringement and sending notices, as well as the data, evidence, records, or information on how Rightscorp verified the files before sending such notices," the motion reads. The complaint itself doesn't include any of this information. Instead, the plaintiffs refer to Rightscorp, which takes a central role in this case as a result. Rightscorp has yet to file a response to the motion, which is due mid-December. After that, the court will decide whether the piracy tracking company must hand over additional information, or not. — A copy of Optimum's patent company Altice USA's request for a motion to compel Rightscorp to comply with the subpoena is available here (pdf) From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more. €300m Per Year Rightsholder 'Private Copying' Payouts Face Scrutiny Andy Maxwell, 22 Nov 04:10 PM 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 did to hinder but still, copying carried out privately in the home was considered a major threat with few enforcement options. Private Copying Levy Valenti's statement in 1982 reached a broad audience but its essence wasn't new. The potential for blank media to undermine the creative industries saw Germany introduce a levy in 1966, usurping the exclusive reproduction right with a right to equitable remuneration. In 1985, France introduced "remuneration for private copying" to ensure that rightsholders were compensated for any harms caused by private copying of their works. A levy was placed on sales of blank media such as cassette tapes but as technology progressed, the levy became applicable to CDs and other recordable media. Today, smartphones are the main source of private copying revenue which according to figures from 2021, now generates around €300 million per year for rightsholders. Pushback Begins While an annual boost of €300 million is good news for the beneficiaries, some believe the levy system is outdated and unnecessarily opaque. Since the price of a mobile phone 64GB and above is inflated by roughly 17 euros, whether anything is copied on the device or not, some have described the levy as anti-consumer too. Compensation is paid to rightsholders through the company Copie France, at rates decided by a committee consisting of rightsholders, manufacturers of recording media, and consumers. A French government report on private copying compensation published in October 2022 (pdf) offered several proposals for improvement. Noting that the rightsholders themselves provide usage statistics, using methods dating back a decade, calculation methods need to be updated transparently to reflect the reality of private copying today, in a market dominated by streaming. French Politician Responds to Government Report A L'Informe report published Monday reveals proposals from Member of Parliament Philippe Latombe in response to the government's report. Latombe's first proposal is to transfer the decisions on how much levy is applied to each medium into the hands of the government. "[I]n the same way as the finance law or the social security financing law, parliamentarians must be decision-makers and accountable to our fellow citizens," the politician explains. Latombe isn't proposing the end of the existing panel (Private Copying Commission) but says its role should be to propose rates to parliament. L'Informe notes that the panel would also be prevented from initiating usage studies carried out by private companies at the levy fund's expense. Instead, that work should be carried out by telecoms regulator, Arcom. People Pay Levy Who Shouldn't, Devices Shouldn't Incur Levy Twice The MP also criticizes the current system where the levy is collected on smartphones and tablets at the point of import, something that forces professional end buyers not liable to pay the levy, to enter a process to try and claim the excess back. Overpayments are currently estimated at between 40 and 50 million euros, so there are calls to simplify the process and ensure quicker refunds. Latombe's third proposal is to exempt smartphones and tablets reconditioned in France, currently subjected to a levy of 10 euros per unit. This would not only promote the use of the recycling market, protect the environment and create jobs, but would also ensure that devices would remain accessible to the socially disadvantaged. From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more. Are you looking for a VPN service? TorrentFreak sponsor NordVPN has some excellent offers. ©2023 TorrentFreak | Office 21338 PO Box 4336 Manchester, North West M61 0BW United Kingdom Web Version   Preferences   Forward   Unsubscribe     Powered by Mad Mimi®A GoDaddy® company