News Massive: Grokster and Morpheus Not Liable - Page 2

The judiciary' s reluctance to expand the protections afforded by the copyright without explicit legislative guidance is a recurring theme. Bound policy, as well as history, supports our consistent deference to Congress when major technological innovations alter the market for copyrighted materials. Congress has the constitutional authority and the institutional ability to accommodate fully the raised permutations of competing interests that are inevitably implicated by such new technology.

In a case like this, in which Congress has not plainly marked our course, we must be circumspect construing the scope of rights created by a legislative enactment which never calculated such a calculus of interests, Sony, 464 U. S. at 431 (citations omitted); accord Teleprompter Corp. v. Columbia Broadcastinq System. Inc. , 4l5 U. S. 394, 414, 94 S. Ct. 1129 (1974).

Therefore , for the reasons stated, the Court HEREBY GRANTS the following Motions:
1. Defendant Grokster, Ltd. s Motion for Summary Judgment (132-1)
2. Defendant StreamCast Networks , Inc, ' s Motion for Partial Summary Judgment Re: Contributory Infringement (140- 1J; and
3. Defendant StreamCast Networks l Ine. ' s Motion for Partial Summary Judgment Re: Vicarious Infringement (142- 1).

The Court HEREBY DENIES Plaintiffs' Motion for Summary Judgment
(146- 1) wi th respect Networks r Inc. only.
Defendant streamCast to Defendants Grokster, Ltd. and StreamCast
In addition, the Court HEREBY DENIES AS MOOT Networks, Inc. ' s Rule 56 (f) Motion (322-1).

IT IS SO ORDERED.

UPDATE
Grokster and RIAA speak on case:

Grokster President Wayne Rosso said he was surprised by the decision because it showed that the judge understood the technology. Peer-to-peer services could be used to enable the Pentagon to better share information, among other uses, he said, and the recording industry should try to work with such services rather than driving them out of business.

"Grokster doesn't and hasn't ever condoned copyright infringement," Rosso said. "We hope this sends a clear signal to the rights owners in this case to come to the table and sit down with us."

The Recording Industry Association of America said it was disappointed with the decision.

"Businesses that intentionally facilitate massive piracy should not be able to evade responsibility for their actions," RIAA CEO Hilary Rosen said in a statement.

Rosen highlighted two portions of the 34-page decision she found favorable: first, that individuals are accountable for copyright violations; and second, Wilson's statement that Grokster and Morpheus "may have intentionally structured their businesses to avoid secondary liability for copyright infringement, while benefiting financially from the illicit draw of their wares." [Reuters]

UPDATE (special thanks to John Parres for the new roundup)
The NY Times weighs in on the decision:

Philip Leigh, a digital media analyst with Raymond James & Associates, an investment banking firm in St. Petersburg, Fla., said that the decision was a clear signal that the industry must fundamentally change, and provide inexpensive, easy-to-access music in a way that consumers have grown accustomed to on services like Napster and Morpheus.
Continued on the next page Page 1 — Page 2 — Page 3 — Page 4

Article Author: Eric Olsen

Career media professional Eric Olsen is honored to be the founder and publisher of Blogcritics.org, which, quite frankly, rules - as do his wife and four children.

Visit Eric Olsen's author page — Eric Olsen's Blog