San Francisco Frontiers - Internet providers not liable for music piracy by users: top US court

Cox Communications, a major broadband ISP, had asked the top court to throw out a jury verdict awarding $1 billion in damages to Sony Music Entertainment and other record labels.

Cox was accused in the case of failing to take action against customers accused of illegally downloading copyrighted music.

In a unanimous 9-0 ruling, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Cox and said an ISP was liable "only if it intended that the provided service be used for infringement."

"A company is not liable as a copyright infringer for merely providing a service to the general public with knowledge that it will be used by some to infringe copyrights," the court said in an opinion written by Justice Clarence Thomas.

"Cox repeatedly discouraged copyright infringement by sending warnings, suspending services, and terminating accounts," the court said.

"A provider induces infringement if it actively encourages infringement through specific acts," it said. "Cox neither induced its users' infringement nor provided a service tailored to infringement."

Cox Communications welcomed the court's decision, calling it a "decisive victory for the broadband industry and for the American people who depend on reliable internet service."

"This opinion affirms that internet service providers are not copyright police and should not be held liable for the actions of their customers," the company said in a statement.

The ruling was also welcomed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), which called it a "win for freedom of expression online."

"If defined too broadly, secondary copyright liability for internet service providers can pose a serious threat to free speech online," Evelyn Danforth-Scott, an ACLU attorney, said in a statement.

The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) meanwhile expressed disappointment.

"To be effective, copyright law must protect creators and markets from harmful infringement," RIAA chairman and CEO Mitch Glazier said.

During oral arguments before the Supreme Court in December, Joshua Rosenkranz, an attorney representing Cox, had warned of "cataclysmic" consequences if the court did not limit the company's copyright liability.

The only way for an ISP to avoid liability is to "cut off the internet, not just for the accused infringer, but for anyone else who happens to use the same connection," Rosenkranz said.

"That could be entire towns, universities or hospitals, turning internet providers into internet police," he said.

V.Mitchell--SFF