In a significant setback for the recording industry, a federal appeals court ruled Friday that Internet service providers cannot be forced to turn over the names of subscribers who are suspected of illegally sharing music on line.
The ruling by a three-judge panel expressed sympathy for the recording industry, which has been hit hard by piracy and file sharing among computer users. But it concluded that nothing in the law authorizes subpoenas against Internet service providers compelling them to identify customers who might be engaging in copyright infringement.
By coincidence, the ruling came on the same day the Dutch Supreme Court ruled that the makers of Kazaa, the world's most popular computer file-sharing program, cannot be held liable for copyright infringement of music or movies swapped on its free software. The ruling in Amsterdam upheld last year's appellate court verdict dismissing a suit filed by a group on behalf of the music industry.
The Washington ruling, by the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, focused on the 1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act, which, as the court said Friday, has already been outstripped by technology, especially the ever-expanding ability of Internet users to find and retrieve files on one another's computers.
"It is not the province of the court, however, to rewrite the DMCA in order to make it fit a new and unforeseen Internet architecture, no matter how damaging that development has been to the music industry or threatens being to the motion picture and software industries," Chief Judge Douglas Ginsburg wrote for the unanimous panel.
The winner today was Verizon, which had challenged the recording industry's interpretation of the 1998 law. The loser was the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), which has sued hundreds of computer users. Some of those sued have expressed dismay that their Internet service providers turned over information about them without their consent.
Verizon argued that, if it complies with subpoenas, it violates the subscribers' right to privacy. The company had also asserted that the special subpoenas, obtainable through a court clerk rather than by a judge's signature, are improper in themselves -- "a radical, new subpoena process," in the words of Sarah Deutsch, vice president and associate general counsel for Verizon.
Friday's ruling is surely not the last word on the issue, either in the courts or in Congress.
"Regardless of this decision, we will continue to defend our rights online on behalf of artists, song-writers and countless others involved in bringing music to the public," Cary Sherman, president of the RIAA, said. "We can and will continue to file copyright infringement lawsuits against file sharers who engage in illegal activity."
Although Sherman was not explicit about his group's plans to carry the court fight further, an appeal to either the full Circuit Court or to the Supreme Court seems inevitable, given the enormous importance of the issues involved.
Deutsch of Verizon said Friday's ruling removes a threat to privacy.
"Copyright holders seeking personal information about Internet subscribers will now have to file a traditional lawsuit" rather than obtaining subpoenas without having to go to a judge, she said.
Further legislative action in Congress also seems inevitable, as lawmakers try to keep up with the dizzying pace of technological changes. At least two congressional committees are already re-examining the 1998 law. Friday's appeals court ruling seemed to urge Congress to take action.
"The plight of copyright holders must be addressed in the first instance by the Congress," the court said. "The stakes are large for the music, motion picture and software industries and their role in fostering technological innovation and our popular culture."
Friday's ruling overturned a district court ruling that had compelled Verizon to turn over the names of some subscribers to music industry lawyers.
The industry association signaled its determination in a letter three days ago to Ivan Seidenberg, Verizon's chief executive.
"We would like to work with you to supplement our efforts by arranging for ISPs to notify their subscribers who are engaged in infringing activity that this conduct is illegal," Sherman and Mitch Bainwol, the association's general counsel, wrote.
Taiwan Transport and Storage Corp (TTS, 台灣通運倉儲) yesterday unveiled its first electric tractor unit — manufactured by Volvo Trucks — in a ceremony in Taipei, and said the unit would soon be used to transport cement produced by Taiwan Cement Corp (TCC, 台灣水泥). Both TTS and TCC belong to TCC International Holdings Ltd (台泥國際集團). With the electric tractor unit, the Taipei-based cement firm would become the first in Taiwan to use electric vehicles to transport construction materials. TTS chairman Koo Kung-yi (辜公怡), Volvo Trucks vice president of sales and marketing Johan Selven, TCC president Roman Cheng (程耀輝) and Taikoo Motors Group
Among the rows of vibrators, rubber torsos and leather harnesses at a Chinese sex toys exhibition in Shanghai this weekend, the beginnings of an artificial intelligence (AI)-driven shift in the industry quietly pulsed. China manufactures about 70 percent of the world’s sex toys, most of it the “hardware” on display at the fair — whether that be technicolor tentacled dildos or hyper-realistic personalized silicone dolls. Yet smart toys have been rising in popularity for some time. Many major European and US brands already offer tech-enhanced products that can enable long-distance love, monitor well-being and even bring people one step closer to
RECORD-BREAKING: TSMC’s net profit last quarter beat market expectations by expanding 8.9% and it was the best first-quarter profit in the chipmaker’s history Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), which counts Nvidia Corp as a key customer, yesterday said that artificial intelligence (AI) server chip revenue is set to more than double this year from last year amid rising demand. The chipmaker expects the growth momentum to continue in the next five years with an annual compound growth rate of 50 percent, TSMC chief executive officer C.C. Wei (魏哲家) told investors yesterday. By 2028, AI chips’ contribution to revenue would climb to about 20 percent from a percentage in the low teens, Wei said. “Almost all the AI innovators are working with TSMC to address the
Malaysia’s leader yesterday announced plans to build a massive semiconductor design park, aiming to boost the Southeast Asian nation’s role in the global chip industry. A prominent player in the semiconductor industry for decades, Malaysia accounts for an estimated 13 percent of global back-end manufacturing, according to German tech giant Bosch. Now it wants to go beyond production and emerge as a chip design powerhouse too, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said. “I am pleased to announce the largest IC (integrated circuit) Design Park in Southeast Asia, that will house world-class anchor tenants and collaborate with global companies such as Arm [Holdings PLC],”