Court Upholds $1B Copyright Infringement Ruling Against Cox Communications
An Internet service provider (ISP) Cox Communications’ attempt to reduce a $1 billion award of damages for copyright infringement has failed, in a win for music companies including Sony, Universal, and Warner.
The US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, Alexandria Division, upheld the award of damages in a decision dated Tuesday, January 12.
In 2018, members of the music industry including Sony, Universal, and Warner accused American ISP Cox of contributory copyright infringement and vicarious copyright infringement. The plaintiffs claimed that a total of 10,017 copyrights were infringed on peer-to-peer networks.
In December 2019, a jury found Cox liable for both vicarious and contributory infringement. The jury awarded the plaintiffs $99,830.28 per work, totalling $1 billion in statutory damages.
