Attorney Fees Award in BMG/Cox Suit a Warning to ISPs, Rightscorp Says

A judge's awarding legal fees and costs to BMG Rights Management should be seen as a message to ISPs about meeting their safe-harbor obligations under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, Rightscorp said in a statement Friday. In a memorandum opinion (in Pacer) Tuesday, on BMG, Round Hill Music and Cox Communications motions for costs and attorney fees, U.S. District Judge Liam O'Grady of Alexandria, Virginia, granted BMG's motion for attorney fees but cut the request by 20 percent to $8.38 million and denied BMG's motion on nontaxable litigation expenses. The judge granted BMG's bill of costs but excluded some costs and cut it by 10 percent, and rejected Cox's motion for attorney fees and costs since it wasn't a prevailing party under the Copyright Act's Section 505. O'Grady said that "to continue to promote the vindication of individuals' copyrights ... BMG (and others like it) should be rewarded for facing up against willful infringers with deep pockets." Rightscorp CEO Christopher Sabec said there's no evidence repeat copyright infringers are being terminated by ISPs, putting them at risk of third-party liability, and that copyright holders hurt by ISPs' lack of safe-harbor implementation "can expect to have their costs covered." Rightscorp wasn't a party in the BMG litigation. Cox didn't comment.