We previously reported on MP3Tunes vs Capitol Records, the copyright case against digital music storage locker site MP3Tunes.
The site’s founder, Michael Robertson, was found guilty of copyright infringement by a jury. The court said Robertson and MP3Tunes were willfully blind to the infringement of the site’s users. Robertson also personally seeded the site with unlicensed music, a huge no-no.
The verdict has now been issued. It is long and complex, but Reuters is reporting a potential dollar amount.
Luke Platzer, one of EMI’s lawyers, estimates that the damages add up to around $41 million.
Michael Robertson’s lawyer is planning an appeal.
Image by Pesky Librarians, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0).
When Nina Ulloa isn’t writing for DMN she’s usually reviewing music or at a show. Follow her on Twitter: @nine_u
He was not found “guilty” because it was NOT a criminal proceeding. He was found “liable”–for the time being. There is a giant difference. One is slanderous reporting, the other is accurate reporting. You should fix your story.
Thanks, Michael.
🙂
I second this. Maybe not slanderous but definitely sloppy. It was a civil case, thus he was found “liable,” not “guilty.”
Correct, except I doubt it could be considered “slanderous”..
as the “intention” of both words is the same..
The shameless cretin got exactly what he deserved.
Next: Google!
Good luck 🙂
Luck is not involved.
We have ContentID — and YouTube — today because Viacom sued YouTube.
Lawsuits are the only way to communicate with Google. And Michael Robertson’s crimes are nothing compared to Google’s.
Perhaps, but Michael Robinson STILL committed a crime, and millions of dollars that are rightfully owed to EMI’s publishing divisions and songwriters will now hopefully get paid.
Perhaps, but Michael Robertson STILL committed a crime. EMI’s publishing division and songwriters are rightfully entitled to get paid. Hopefully, they will.
Not slanderous but certainly sloppy. This was a civil matter so he was found liable, not “guilty.”
You infringe, you pay. It’s pretty simple, and it wasn’t like he didn’t know about it from previous experience (MP3.com).