Volume II

Issue : 6: March 18, 2004

• Protest Site Withstands Scrutiny under Anticybersquatting Legislation
• EC Data Protection Directive Working Party Critical of Canadian Airline Passenger Information Program
• U.S. Federal Communications Commission Releases VoIP Rulemaking Initiative
• Online Pharmacy Takes Federal Government to Court
• Spam Lawsuits Filed by U.S. Internet Providers Include Canadian Defendants
• RIAA Ordered to Sue "John Doe" Defendants Individually; Recording Companies Seek Copyright Fees from Chinese Karaoke Bars
• B.C. Introduces New Consumer Protection Bills
• Utah Passes First State Net Filtering Bill
• Information Broker Pays Settlement to Mother of Slain Girl
• The European Union Passes New Antipiracy Law

Home > Volume II > Issue 6: March 18, 2004 > RIAA Ordered to Sue "John Doe" Defendants Individually; Recording Companies Seek Copyright Fees from Chinese Karaoke Bars

RIAA Ordered to Sue "John Doe" Defendants Individually; Recording Companies Seek Copyright Fees from Chinese Karaoke Bars

The Recording Industry Association of America ("RIAA") has been ordered by a federal judge in the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania to sue each of over 200 "John Doe" defendants individually instead of grouping them together under one action as file sharers. The RIAA uses the "John Doe" method of using Internet protocol addresses where individual identities are not yet known. Filing individual lawsuits will cost the RIAA over $30,000 in court filing fees and, according to the Electronic Frontier Foundation, will ensure that the judge assesses the strength of each case individually.

For more information, visit:
http://www.wired.com/news/digiwood/0,1412,62576,00.html

Universal, Time Warner, EMI and over 40 other recording companies have banded together to demand copyright fees from Chinese karaoke bars. They allege that China's renowned piracy industry, including movies, software, music and fashion, costs Western companies approximately $16 billion in lost sales annually, according to international trade groups. Total copyright fees owing for the illegally duplicated recordings often used in Chinese karaoke bars could be in the tens of millions of dollars.

For more information, visit:
http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/news/editorial/8096891.htm