The Appeals Court said Cox, a major ISP, lost their safe harbor protections by not implementing a termination procedure for repeat copyright infringers. Cox had taken a hard stance against “DMCA Settlement Letters”, refusing to forward any from Rightscorp, BMG’s rep.
Cox had appealed from a lower court ruling which also held them liable for $25 million in Statutory Damages.
The 4th Circuit sent the matter back to the District Court for a new trial on whether Cox’s alleged “wilful blindness” is enough for the jury to find them liable. The District Court had instructed the jury using a “should have known” or negligence standard that the appeals court found was not a high enough standard to meet and match other case law, particularly patent law.
Opinion and Order inside.
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