In what may be one of the biggest court victories involving copyright, an Australian court says Internet service providers (ISPs) must release the names and data of Internet users who allegedly downloaded copies of a mega-hit movie.
The federal court decision is a huge win for the owners of "Dallas Buyers Club," which they claim has been illegally downloaded by 4,700-plus people using a file-sharing network.
The lawsuit by Dallas Buyers Club LLC and its parent company Voltage Pictures LLC was filed against six Australian ISPs. It claims the downloads were made using BitTorrent, a file-sharing network users accessed via the ISPs.
Voltage Pictures was seeking info on the addresses tied to downloading the movie and personal details associated with more than 4,700 IP addresses allegedly used to share "Dallas Buyers Club" using BitTorrent.
The court approved a discovery order that now grants Voltage Pictures and the Dallas Buyers Club LL access to the names and home addresses of those IP account holders.
But the court also ruled that the information cannot be made public — at least for now. The movie owner also can't make any moves toward the account holders in relation over payment for the download without the court's approval.
Michael Bradley, the counsel representing Voltage and the movie company, said the legal decision sets a precedent. Australia holds one of the world's highest rates of illegal download activity.
"Australia is one of the jurisdictions with the highest rate of unauthorized downloading and this is a first step from a copyright owner to try to change that balance," Bradley said.
The ISPs have 28 days to file an appeal — and there is no word yet on whether they will take that step.
The court win for the film owners arrives shortly after ISPs and content rights owners debuted a draft policy for fighting piracy in Australia, and the country's top prosecutor launched new site-blocking legislation that would let copyright holders take action against an ISP that is aiding illegal copyright activity by providing access to websites.
The parties are due back in court on April 21.
