The two unnamed men have been ordered to stop file-sharing and
now face bills for legal costs and damages.
The BPI began taking legal action against users of peer-to-peer
networks like Kazaa in October 2004. It has settled the majority of
the 139 legal cases it has launched so far – with some individuals
paying up to £6,500 to avoid a court case.
In August, the industry association announced that it had filed
formal legal proceedings against five identified file-sharers who
were refusing to settle.
Courts have now issued what the BPI is describing as “landmark”
rulings in two of these cases.
In the first case, a man from King’s Lynn argued that the BPI
had no direct evidence of infringement. This was
rejected by the High Court and summary judgment was granted to the
BPI without the need for a trial.
The man has been ordered to make an immediate payment of £5,000.
Total costs are estimated at £13,500 and final damages are expected
to take the bill even higher.
In the second case, a postman from Brighton sought to defend the
case against him on the grounds that he was unaware that
what he was doing was illegal and did not seek to gain
financially.
"Ignorance is not a defence," said Judge Justice Lawrence
Collins.
The defendant was ordered to make an immediate payment of
£1,500, pending final determination of costs and damages.
The BPI is currently seeking settlements in a further 51 cases
launched last December. The file-sharers, from the length and
breadth of the UK, have been given a deadline of 31st January to
settle cases and avoid costly court action.
"We have been very patient litigators,” said BPI General Counsel
Roz Groome. “We have given these people every opportunity to
settle. Only when they refused to settle did we take them to court,
which has now found in our favour. These rulings are a massive step
forward in the music industry's bid to fight illegal
file-sharing."
“We would warn anyone else tempted to illegally upload and
download music to cease immediately. The legal penalties can be
significant,” she added.
