Charter 'Thumbed Its Nose' at Piracy Complaints, Music Industry Says in Lawsuit

Charter Communications, through "willful and extensive" contribution to music piracy by thousands of broadband subscribers, did nothing to curb that copyright infringement but "prioritize[d] its own profits over its legal obligations," said music labels and publishers in a civil complaint Friday (in Pacer, docket 19-cv-874) filed in U.S. District Court in Denver. They said Charter "routinely thumbed its nose" at the labels by continuing to provide service to subscribers it knew to be serially infringing copyright. The suit lists several IP addresses allegedly of Charter subscribers who have been subject of dozens of infringement notices. Among those suing are Warner Brothers, Atlantic, Sony Music and Capitol Records. They allege violations of the Copyright Act and seek unspecified statutory damages. Charter told us Monday it will “defend against these baseless accusations.” Some of the same labels also are suing cable ISP Grande Communications (see 1802080001) and Cox Communications (see 1808020009).