Volume II

Issue : 7: April 1, 2004

• Philippines Government to Benefit from Online Gambling
• World Trade Organization Rules that the U.S. Should be Opened to Internet Gambling
• Accountant Sues Search Engines for Libel for "Injurious" Search Results
• Court Finds New York Times Liable for Defamation for Use of Companys Graphic in Article
• Japanese Court Finds No Copyright Exists in Web News Headlines
• European Union Hits Microsoft with Record $613 Million Fine for Antitrust Abuses
• B.C. Supreme Court Finds Potential Liability for Chat Room Owners over Postings
• German Court Rules Pop-Up Ads Require Permission
• The Dutch Supreme Court Rules ISP can Ban Spammers
• Privacy Commissioner of Canada Releases New Decisions
• California Appeals Court Finds Personal Jurisdiction over Two Out-of-State Businesses
• Canadian Federal Court Dismisses Motion to Compel ISP to Disclose Identity of File Sharers

Home > Volume II > Issue 7: April 1, 2004 > Canadian Federal Court Dismisses Motion to Compel ISP to Disclose Identity of File Sharers

Canadian Federal Court Dismisses Motion to Compel ISP to Disclose Identity of File Sharers

On March 31, 2004, the Federal Court of Canada dismissed a motion by the Canadian Recording Industry of Canada (CRIA) to compel Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to reveal the identities of 29 anonymous users who shared music files over the Internet. In reaching its decision , the court found that CRIA had not shown a prima facie case of copyright infringement by the file sharers. The court held that copying files for personal use and storing them on a shared directory that can be accessed through a peer-to-peer service did not constitute copyright infringement. Significantly, the court held that the mere placing of personal copies of music on a shared directory where it is accessible by other computers is not a violation of section 80(1) of the Copyright Act. There was no evidence that the alleged infringers either distributed or authorized the reproduction of the recordings. Referring to the recent Supreme Court of Canada's ruling in CCH Canadian Ltd. v. Law Society of Canada , the court stated that there is not a significant difference between placing a photocopier in a room full of copyrighted material and placing personal copies of music files on a shared directory accessible by other Internet users. There must be a positive act by the owner to distribute the recordings. It is not enough to establish that the alleged infringer solely made the recording available online.

Other reasons for the court's decision to dismiss the motion were: 1) CRIA did not demonstrate that the ISPs are the only practical source for discovering the identities of the file sharers and 2) the privacy rights of the ISP customers outweighed the public interest in disclosing their identities, since there was a serious possibility of identifying an innocent ISP customer. The CRIA intends to appeal this decision.

For a copy of the CRIA decision, visit:
http://www.fct-cf.gc.ca/bulletins/whatsnew/T-292-04.pdf
For copy of the CCH decision, visit:
http://www.lexum.umontreal.ca/csc-scc/en/rec/html/2004scc013.wpd.html
For a discussion of the CCH Canadian Ltd . decision, visit:
http://www.heydary.com/publications/canada/copyright/lsuc.html
For a copy of the news release by CRIA, visit:
http://www.cria.ca/news/cria_31mar04.htm