Washington — the supreme court On Wednesday, it sided with Internet service provider Cox Communications on its project Copyright battle With record companies due to illegal music downloads by Cox’s clients.
The judges unanimously ruled that Cox had no liability for its customers’ copyright infringements, reflecting the jury’s verdict and the lower court’s rulings.
“Cox neither abetted infringement by its users nor provided a service specifically designed for infringement,” Justice Clarence Thomas wrote for the court in an opinion acknowledging that music record companies “struggled to protect their copyrights in the age of online music sharing.”
The court acted in a lawsuit brought by Sony Music Entertainment that said Cox did not do enough to deter or cut off customers who downloaded music they had not paid for.
The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals partially upheld the jury’s verdict against Cox, but vacated its verdict of more than $1 billion.
Cox Communications provides Internet service to more than 6 million homes and businesses in more than a dozen states. The company warned of widespread access disruptions if judges rule against it.
Cox said he may be asked to end access to families, hospitals, universities and cafes based on “accusations of abuse”.