Jury awards $675K in Boston music downloading case

[Adv1sor]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090731/ap_ ... ownloading

BOSTON – A Boston University student has been ordered to pay $675,000 to four record labels for illegally downloading and sharing music.

Joel Tenenbaum, of Providence, R.I., admitted he downloaded and distributed 30 songs. The only issue for the jury to decide was how much in damages to award the record labels.

Under federal law, the recording companies were entitled to $750 to $30,000 per infringement. But the law allows as much as $150,000 per track if the jury finds the infringements were willful. The maximum jurors could have awarded in Tenenbaum's case was $4.5 million.

The case is only the nation's second music downloading case against an individual to go to trial.

Last month, a federal jury in Minneapolis ruled a Minnesota woman must pay nearly $2 million for copyright infringement.

[BasharOfTheAges]

I'm honestly disappointed the ruling was for that low. This case could have easily doubled judgment from the Rasset case in MN (for a total of $4.5 Million) and been the top story on every newscast and paper in the country and rightfully brought the collective moral outrage surrounding this to a head, making it far more than a fringe internet baawwwwfest.

[Vivaldi]

Last month, a federal jury in Minneapolis ruled a Minnesota woman must pay nearly $2 million for copyright infringement.

I remember reading about that one a while ago, it was much worse IMO. Bankrupt a single mom of three children with a low paying job? Sure, I guess you can, but it fail to see how the eight songs she downloaded gave you all that much inconvieniance.


Grade "A" Dick move if I've ever seen one.

[Vivaldi]

Last month, a federal jury in Minneapolis ruled a Minnesota woman must pay nearly $2 million for copyright infringement.

I remember reading about that one a while ago, it was much worse IMO. Bankrupt a single mom of three children with a low paying job? Sure, I guess you can, but it fail to see how the eight songs she downloaded gave you all that much inconvieniance.


Grade "A" Dick move if I've ever seen one.

Some factual inaccuracies I've found in my post, but the sentiment still holds in spades. I'm thinking of the aforementioned Rasset case.

[Minimoto]

The government is worst than the mob because they are a legal mob.

[gotenks794]

What made them decide to go after him? 30 songs? That seems really unfair to him, that they would pick him out of all the people who do it. How'd that get to court when all the others don't?

[Castor Troy]

That's it. I'm purging my hard drive.

[Pwolf]

What made them decide to go after him? 30 songs? That seems really unfair to him, that they would pick him out of all the people who do it. How'd that get to court when all the others don't?

there's about 100+ other cases going on also. they also vowed to stop going after the small people (except for the ones already in processes) so there would be a lot more...


Pwolf

[BasharOfTheAges]

What made them decide to go after him? 30 songs? That seems really unfair to him, that they would pick him out of all the people who do it. How'd that get to court when all the others don't?

there's about 100+ other cases going on also. they also vowed to stop going after the small people (except for the ones already in processes) so there would be a lot more...


Pwolf

They selectively drop (without prejudice so they can re-sue in the future if they want) the cases they don't find to be have both overwhelming "evidence" and a defendant they believe a jury will not be sympathetic with.

[Megamom]

You munch money, my God knows that I'm legal!

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