Rich Fiscus
10 Jul 2008 9:37
According to a decision by the Frankfurt Court of Appeal the victims of WiFi theft can't be held responsible for the thieves' copyright infringement. The same court that previously ruled parents can't be held responsible for the flle sharing activities of their children overturned a lower court's decision, and potentially dealt a blow to the campaign being waged by a UK lawfirm against several hundred people for alleged copyright infringement.
Lawyers at Davenport Lyons have been sending out letters to alleged UK file sharers pointing out the German court ruling making individuals whose WiFi connection is used by others without authorization responsible for any infringement. They went on to point out that it was likely that decision would be echoed by UK courts. Don't expect to see a similar claim about this new decision.
With the possible implications of the ruling don't be surprised to see yet another round of arguments before things are decided for sure. Christian Solmecke, a lawyer currently defending around 500 file-sharers said “The future will show us what the highest court in Germany - the Bundesgerichtshof - says to this difficult question.”