Record labels including Sony Music , Warner Music Group and Universal Music Group have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review a decision that wiped out a $1 billion jury verdict for them against internet service provider Cox Communications.
In a petition made public on Tuesday, the labels asked the high court to reconsider a ruling that Cox was not vicariously liable for infringing thousands of their copyrights by enabling its users to pirate their music.
Spokespeople and attorneys for Cox and the labels did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Wednesday.
More than 50 labels teamed up to sue Cox in 2018. They accused Cox of failing to address thousands of infringement notices, cut off access for repeat infringers or take reasonable measures to deter pirates.
A Virginia jury found in 2019 that Cox owed $1 billion for its customers’ violations of more than 10,000 music copyrights.
The Richmond, Virginia-based 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said in February that the award could not stand, overturning the jury’s ruling that Cox was vicariously liable for its users’ copyright infringement and remanding the case for a new trial on damages.
The appeals court upheld the jury’s decision that Cox was liable for user infringement on other grounds, which Cox challenged in a separate Supreme Court petition last week.
The labels said in their petition that the vicarious-liability decision should be reinstated because Cox profited from its customers’ piracy. They also said that the 4th Circuit’s decision was out of line with other circuit courts’ rulings on the issue.
The case is Sony Music Entertainment v. Cox Communications, Inc, U.S. Supreme Court, No. 24-181.
For the labels: Cate Stetson and Jo-Ann Sagar of Hogan Lovells; and Matthew Oppenheim, Scott Zebrak and Jeffrey Gould of Oppenheim + Zebrak
For Cox: Joshua Rosenkranz and Christopher Cariello of Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe; and Roman Martinez of Latham & Watkins
