Universal, Warner and Sony filed a $2.6 billion copyright infringement lawsuit against Verizon on Friday, The Hollywood Reporter (THR) reported.
A coalition of major record companies has filed a lawsuit against Verizon, accusing the telecommunications giant of failing to curb copyright infringement among its users. according to Via THR. The lawsuit, filed in New York District Court, alleges that Verizon knew the copyright infringement was ongoing but repeatedly ignored notices from the labels about hundreds of thousands of repeat infringers.
Verizon sued for $2.6 billion in copyright infringement by major record labels https://t.co/2yUxZpg0Id
— The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) July 15, 2024
The lawsuit marks the entertainment industry's latest fight against digital piracy, with the record companies seeking roughly $2.6 billion in damages and a court order accusing Verizon of willful copyright infringement, THR reported. Production companies and major studios have increasingly targeted internet service providers (ISPs) such as AT&T and Comcast for enabling the illegal sharing of copyrighted material. (Related article: Judge rules that moviegoers can sue movie studios for misleading trailers after Ana de Armas was cut from film)
According to THR, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 (DMCA) gives ISPs limited liability protection if they comply with certain conditions, such as terminating their contracts with repeat infringers. The lawsuit alleges that Verizon has not complied with these obligations, ignoring more than 340,000 infringement notices since 2020, with some subscribers receiving more than 100 notices.
BARCELONA, SPAIN – JANUARY 30: An illuminated logo is displayed outside the Sony booth at ISE 2024 in Barcelona, ​​Spain on January 30, 2024. (Photo by Cesc Maymo/Getty Images)
The record labels claim that Verizon's anti-piracy cooperation program is superficial and that its fees and demands for compensation prevent it from processing and delivering notices to pirate users, the media added. They also allege that Verizon is prioritizing profits over legal obligations by failing to take decisive action against repeat infringers out of concern for losing subscribers and revenue.
The suit follows a pattern of similar lawsuits in which Verizon and other ISPs have been targeted by the entertainment industry. In 2022, Verizon, along with AT&T and Comcast, settled lawsuits related to copyright infringement issues with the companies behind films like Dallas Buyers Club, I Feel Pretty! and Colossal, according to THR. The current lawsuit seeks $150,000 in statutory damages for each of the more than 17,000 works that are allegedly infringed.
