Kim Dotcom and Megaupload face copyright lawsuit from major movie studios

Online file-sharing sites can be a major sources of copyright infringement. Some websites exist solely for the purpose of illegally uploading and downloading copyrighted materials, including movies, music, games and more. 

Recently, the Motion Picture Association of America announced that several major movie studios have filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against file-sharing site Megaupload and its founder Kim Dotcom. Although Megaupload is now defunct, the site facilitated and allegedly encouraged users to upload stolen content. Although the site was shut down two years ago, the MPAA has recently announced that six movie studios have filed a civil lawsuit against Megaupload, according to an Engadget article. 

"When Megaupload.com was shut down in 2012 by U.S. law enforcement, it was by all estimates the largest and most active infringing website targeting creative content in the world," said Steven Fabrizio, Senior Executive Vice President and Global General Counsel of the Motion Picture Association of America in a press release. 

He went on to say that Megaupload's intent to reach a global audience made the infringing content available in at least 20 languages, and cost companies over half a billion dollars in copyright damages. An additional $175 million went to criminal proceeds. Fabrizio also noted that the business model used by Megaupload encouraged and rewarded users for uploading popular content. Often, this content consisted of movies, television shows and other content that users did not own the rights to.

The major movie studios that filed the lawsuit include Disney, Twentieth Century Fox, Paramount, Columbia, Warner Brothers and Universal.

Distributing stolen intellectual property can carry a hefty penalty. If you are wondering how copyright law might affect your business, contact a Phoenix small business attorney. A small business attorney can provide the expert legal counsel you need to protect your intellectual property from infringement. 

Categorised in: Intellectual Property Law

This post was written by