File Sharers Win More Protection
Katie Dean, Wired.Com
28 October 2004
Alleged file sharers must be given a notice explaining their legal
rights before their internet service provider hands over any
personal information to the music labels, a Pennsylvania judge
ruled, making it still harder for the music industry to use the
courts to intimidate people suspected of piracy.
Privacy advocates called the Oct. 12 order by U.S. District Judge
Cynthia Rufe a positive step in protecting the privacy and due
process rights of accused copyright infringers.
The Recording Industry Association of America has filed thousands
of so-called "John Doe" lawsuits, where the industry's trade
association sues people based on their internet protocol addresses
without knowing their names. The RIAA must first obtain an order
from a judge to subpoena the internet service providers for the
name of the defendant. With Rufe's order, now ISPs in the Eastern
District of Pennsylvania must provide a detailed notice to their
customer advising them of their rights, before they hand over their
customers' names to the music companies' lawyers.
"It's another step in the evolution of protections for people who
are accused by the record labels of file sharing, but may have a
defense and may want to protect their anonymity," said Wendy
Seltzer, an attorney with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, an
organization that filed a friend-of-the-court brief in the case.
"It puts some procedural safeguards into the process."
"We have always encouraged ISPs to inform their subscribers of
pending subpoenas. This action by the court is consistent with
that," Jonathan Lamy, a spokesman for the RIAA, wrote in an e-mail.
"Additionally, it should be noted that nothing in the court's
directive absolves an illegal file sharer from liability under the
copyright laws."
The order includes clear-cut information on how to challenge the
subpoena if the defendant chooses and a list of attorneys who can
help defendants weigh their legal options.
"To maintain a lawsuit against you in the District Court in
Philadelphia, the record companies must establish jurisdiction over
you in Pennsylvania," the notice reads. "If you do not live or work
in Pennsylvania, or visit the state regularly, you may be able to
challenge the Pennsylvania court's jurisdiction over you."
Paul Levy, an attorney with Public Citizen, which also filed a
friend-of-the court brief, said that such information is important
to convey to defendants because it is very likely that some of the
ISP customers live in other states, even though their ISP is
located in Pennsylvania.
"(The judge has) treated each defendant as an individual, so each
can make their own individual decision about what's best for them
in first responding to the subpoena and then the lawsuit," Levy
said. "We are certainly going to be urging judges in other parts of
the country to grant similar notices."
Meanwhile, the RIAA sued another 750 "John Doe" defendants on
Thursday, including 25 who are accused of using university networks
to share copyright music. The 13 schools targeted include Grinnell
College, Hamilton College, Indiana State University, Iowa
University and the University of Wisconsin at Oshkosh, among
others.
The music labels also filed an additional 213 lawsuits against
named defendants who had been identified during the legal process.
Those defendants either refused or ignored the music companies
offers to settle the case before proceeding, according to a RIAA
statement.