The Justice Department Weighs In: The Solicitor General's Brief in Cox v. Sony

The US Solicitor General has filed an important amicus curiae brief in Cox Communications, Inc. v. Sony Music Entertainment, urging the Supreme Court to consider the case. This development is significant for those following high-tech secondary liability and copyright law.

At its core, the case concerns whether an Internet Service Provider (ISP) can be held liable for copyright infringement committed by its users, even if the ISP did not directly profit from the infringing activity. The Solicitor General, in its brief, has sided with Cox, arguing against a broad application of secondary liability for ISPs.

The brief contends that imposing liability on ISPs simply for continuing to provide Internet access after receiving notices of infringement deviates from common law principles of secondary liability. It draws parallels to the Supreme Court's recent analysis in Twitter v. Taamneh.

The Solicitor General highlighted a key concern: holding ISPs liable could have severe consequences for public access to the Internet. They specifically mention the impact on entities such as "hotels, hospitals, universities, and regional ISPs serving hundreds or thousands of individual users". The Justice Department argues that the Fourth Circuit's decision could "encourage providers to avoid substantial monetary liability by terminating subscribers after receiving a single notice of alleged infringement". This could lead "numerous non-infringing users to lose their Internet access".

This seems especially important for community-centered connectivity (e.g., community networks) and national research and education networks (NRENs).

• Read the news article "Justice Department Supports Cox in Copyright Case" at Broadband Breakfast
• Read the full Solicitor General's brief here