http://www.p2pon.com/2010/09/12/movie-studios-can-subpoena-internet-users-data-federal-u-s-judge-rules/On Friday U.S. District Judge Rosemary Collyer ruled in favor of a copyright owner, allowing it to subpoena the names of a number of internet users accused of pirating and making available over the Internet the film ‘Far Cry. Collyer denied motions by some of the file sharing suspects to nullify subpoenas for subscriber information saying that once they hand over subscriber information to their ISPs, Internet users virtually give up their right to privacy.
The copyright holder that wants to sue the file sharers who allegedly infringed the copyright of ‘Far Cry’ an adaptation of a hugely successful videogame is German limited partnership Achte/Neunte Boll Kino Beteiligungs Gmbh & Co KG. They managed to get their hands on the IP addresses of computers associated with the illegal downloading and sharing of the film and then subpoenaed the ISPs in order to be given the names of individuals associated with those addresses.
"Once they hand over subscriber information to their ISPs, Internet users virtually give up their right to privacy"Privacy is going to be the big battle coming up. It seems that some courts are allowing information to the cartels just by them asking for it. Confidentially seems to be a thing of the past as far as some courts are concerned. This seems a very one sided decision. It's a pity that courts aren't prepared to allow the same degree of information about how the cartels use their money.
