From the
New York Times:
Quote:
A federal judge ruled on Wednesday that LimeWire, the popular file-sharing service, was liable for copyright infringement, the latest in a growing list of decisions against services that allow users to easily distribute music and videos around the Internet at no cost.
Judge Kimba M. Wood of United States District Court in Manhattan said in summary judgments that LimeWire and its creator, Mark Gorton, had committed copyright infringement, engaged in unfair competition and induced others to commit copyright infringement.
The suit had been brought by a coalition of the nation’s largest record companies in 2006. A hearing is scheduled for June 1 to discuss outstanding issues in the case, including damages.
|
The precedents are being established in dealing with file-sharing organizations. Also significant:
Quote:
|
Professor Zittrain said that the ruling did not appear to consider the technology itself as illegal, only the promoting and encouraging of illegal uses of that technology, which is consistent with the precedent established by the Supreme Court’s Grokster opinion.
|