Intellectual Property Law

A judge postponed a Recording Industry Association of America file sharing hearing that was supposed to be webcast live Tuesday, amid doubts about whether the broadcast would be legal.

U.S. District Judge Nancy Gertner of Massachusetts ruled (.pdf) Monday, "until the narrowcast issue is resolved," the hearing is delayed until at least April 30.

It would have been the first time an RIAA case was broadcast. Federal trial judges rarely allow photography or sound recording of live courtroom action.

The pretrial hearing concerns Boston University student Joel Tenenbaum whose attorney, Harvard University professor Charles Nesson, is challenging the lawsuit and the constitutionality of the Copyright Act, which allows penalties of up to $150,000 per infringed music track.

The RIAA, fearing the webcast "will be readily subject to editing and manipulation by any reasonably tech-savvy individual," appealed Gertner's Jan. 20 decision (.pdf) allowing the broadcast.

On Friday, the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals suggested there was no legal basis (.pdf) for the broadcast, but set an April 7 hearing to hear arguments on the issue. The appeals court provided attorneys in the case with a 1996 resolution from the court's governing body showing no filming was allowed.

The resolution runs contrary to Gertner's ruling allowing the coverage. She ruled: (.pdf) "Nothing in the local rules of the District Court of Massachusetts, the policies of the Judicial Council for the First Circuit, life or logic suggests that this motion should be denied."

The RIAA has sued more than 30,000 individuals for file sharing, but has said it would begin phasing out its 5-year-old litigation campaign in exchange for Internet Service Providers  cutting off access to file sharing repeat offenders.

Image: Modernhumorist.com

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