James Delahunty
12 Sep 2011 18:43
German court rules against EMI in case involving Russia-Hosted eD2K website.
The Cologne court heard a case brought against Internet Service Provider (ISP) HeaseNet by the EMI record company. EMI said a HeaseNet customer was using HeaseNet's network to access a Russian-hosted file-sharing website that offered eDonkey links to files.
Since the customer was using HeaseNet's network to access the website, EMI argued that HeaseNet was contributing / aiding the copyright infringing activities taking place. EMI wanted access to the file sharing site blocked by HeaseNet, arguing that failure to comply with the demand made the ISP party to the lawsuit.
The Cologne District Court 28th Civil Division found no legal basis for forcing an ISP to control the data communications of their customers, saying that the, "defendant is not committed to such precautionary measures."
Using litigation to force ISPs to block access to websites that offer pirated content (or link to somewhere else it can be found) is the latest trend for the industry as it battles Internet piracy, and is bringing up serious questions about censorship (and who decides when its necessary) and the privacy rights of Internet users.