[IP] : Studios win $100 million judgment against TorrentSpy

[David Farber <dave@farber.net>]

________________________________________
From: Kurt Albershardt [kurt@nv.net]
Sent: Wednesday, May 07, 2008 10:21 PM
To: David Farber
Subject: Studios win $100 million judgment against TorrentSpy

<http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9938469-7.html>

May 7, 2008 1:37 PM PDT

Studios win $100 million judgment against TorrentSpy
Posted by Stefanie Olsen

In a major win for Hollywood studios, a California federal judge has ordered TorrentSpy to pay some $110 million in damages for infringing the copyright of thousands of films and TV shows through its BitTorrent search engine.

The Los Angeles judge, U.S. District Judge Florence-Marie Cooper, also issued a permanent injunction against TorrentSpy, which was once one of the most popular indexes of BitTorrent files before it shut down in March after a two-year copyright battle with the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA). The company closed its site on March 24, citing financial hardship and a desire to protect the privacy of its users.

MPAA CEO Dan Glickman said the judgment should serve as warning to other search services of file-sharing applications.

"The demise of TorrentSpy is a clear victory for the studios and demonstrates that such pirate sites will not be allowed to continue to operate without facing relentless litigation by copyright holders," he said in a statement.

The judge ordered TorrentSpy to pay $30,000 per copyright infringement--for 3,699 films and shows. That works out to be worth $110,970,000.

How that amount will be paid is unclear. A call to TorrentSpy's attorney was not immediately returned.

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