📰 New article from TorrentFreak
Record Labels Drop Piracy Lawsuits Against Altice and Verizon in Wake of Cox Ruling
The Music Industry’s Billion-Dollar Lawsuit Spree Just Hit a Wall
If you thought the music industry was feeling particularly litigious lately, think again. Following a massive Supreme Court ruling that essentially changed the rules of the game, major record labels are officially waving the white flag on several high-stakes piracy lawsuits.
The target? Internet Service Providers (ISPs) like Verizon and Altice. For a while, labels were chasing staggering sums—we’re talking $2.6 billion in the Verizon case alone—arguing that these providers were turning a blind eye to copyright infringement.
But a recent Supreme Court decision regarding Cox Communications has made those “head in the sand” arguments much harder to win. The court ruled that for an ISP to be liable, there must be proof they actually intended for their service to be used for piracy. It’s a much higher bar than just “knowing about it.”
Seeing the writing on the wall, both Altice and Verizon have reached agreements to dismiss their cases with prejudice (meaning they can’t sue again for these same claims). While one case against RCN is still hanging in the balance, the era of billion-dollar “contributory infringement” lawsuits against your cable company looks like it might be heading toward a quiet retirement.