In a 46-page decision that became public Friday, US District Judge Stephen Wilson said a lawsuit against Sharman Networks could proceed, since Kazaa software had been downloaded and used by millions of Californians.
Sharman Networks is headquartered in Australia and incorporated in the Pacific island nation of Vanuatu. The company had filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit, arguing it was not bound by US laws since it did not have substantial contacts with California.
Although the company was unable to respond to ZDNet enquiries by press time, the Sydney-based office is set to release a statement responding to the judgement early this afternoon eastern standard time.
"Given that Sharman's (Kazaa) software has been downloaded more than 143 million times, it would be mere cavil to deny that Sharman engages in a significant amount of contact with California residents," Wilson wrote. Also, he said, "many, if not most, music and video copyrights are owned by California-based companies."
The Motion Picture Association of America and the Recording Industry Association of America applauded the decision in a joint statement.
"We are pleased that the court denied the efforts of Sharman Networks...to avoid being subject to the suit. Sharman Networks...should be held accountable by US laws, which clearly indicate that what they are doing is illegal, and that they should not profit from it," the trade associations said.
This week's ruling came after Wilson heard oral arguments in November 2002, and could mean that the Kazaa lawsuit will be rolled into a larger one involving Streamcast Networks and Grokster, two rival file-swapping companies that use the same underlying technology as Sharman.
Wilson said the case was different from a similar one involving a Texas man who was sued in California for distributing a DVD-descrambling utility online. The California Supreme Court said in November 2002 that Internet distribution of software did not subject someone to California jurisdiction. The US Supreme Court briefly put that decision on hold, then backed out of the case this month.
They know where you are. Last semester I wrote an extensive paper on the legality of P2P filesharing and the desire of the RIAA and other coporate copyright owners to litigate file sharing individuals for my E-Commerce Law subject at uni. It is really frightening to see how average people like you and I are being tracked, chased and caught then prosecuted for breach of copyright in other countries. This is just the first step. For those who have extensive collections of downloaded, unlicience data, search the net for the NET Act, enacted by the Clinton administration in the US. BE very aware of youronline activities - your real freedom may depend upon it!!!