A Boston University graduate who must pay the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) $675,000 in damages due to a copyright infringement lawsuit can continue to “promote” illegal music downloading, a federal judge has ruled.
"The word 'promote' is far too vague to withstand scrutiny under the First Amendment," U.S. District Court Judge Nancy Gertner noted. "Although plaintiffs are entitled to statutory damages, they have no right to silence defendant's criticism of the statutory regime under which he is obligated to pay those damages.''
Last July, Tenenbaum lost a high-profile case in which the RIAA won monetary damages for copyright infringement over a playlist of tracks ranging from Green Day's "Nice Guys Finish Last" to Nirvana's "Come As You Are." Shortly after the RIAA won the case, Tenenbaum's playlist made it to The Pirate Bay, though it's unknown who made the list available.
"The $675,000 Mixtape" was promoted with an image of Tenenbaum described as "DJ Joel" with a caption saying the playlist was "Approved by the RIAA."
Both before and after the trial, Tenenbaum criticized the RIAA for its tactics, but had this to say of the judge's first amendment ruling: "She categorically confirmed my First Amendment rights, and I'm thrilled about that. I'm just very pleased I can speak freely without the court having to come down on me for it.''
Tenenbaum now can request a retrial or seek lower monetary damages -- he's expected to do both -- by Jan. 4, which will likely take place in Judge Gertner's court. According to the Boston Globe, the judge has been relativity sympathetic towards high school and college students accused of file sharing, while also expressing disappointment in the methods the RIAA has used to crack down on file sharing.
I expect Tenenbaum to file for a new trial, but expect the same type of result – he'll have to pay monetary damages, though it could be less than the $675,000.
I don't condone copyright infringement, but attempting to sue file sharers for thousands of dollars at a time to avoid legal action – or go to court and raise the monetary damages – has proven to be ineffective in combating overall piracy levels. Peer-to-peer music piracy remains a major problem for the RIAA and other copyright groups, and the on-going litigation has just further alienated many customers.
