Briefs filed at Supreme Court in file-sharing case
Internet case pits artists against civil libertarians
Tuesday, January 25, 2005 Posted: 4:39 PM EST (2139 GMT)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Former Bush administration Supreme Court lawyer Theodore Olson has lined up with Hollywood in a big stakes fight over Internet file sharing.
Olson represented President Bush in the 2000 Bush v. Gore case at the high court and was solicitor general until last summer when he returned to private practice in Washington.
Now he's at the Supreme Court again, this time on the side of artists including Jimmy Buffett, Sheryl Crow, the Dixie Chicks, the Eagles, Reba McEntire, Avril Lavigne and Kenny Rogers.
About 20 briefs were filed this week at the court supporting recording companies and movie studios that are trying to stop online distribution of copyrighted works. Justices hear arguments March 29 in the case that will decide if file-sharing services are responsible when their customers illegally swap songs and movies.
"The world is watching to see whether we really mean what we say when we promise protection to innovation and the creative process," Olson, who filed arguments on behalf of the Defenders of Property Rights, said Tuesday at a news conference.
On the other side are civil libertarians and consumer groups who contend that a defeat for Grokster Ltd. and StreamCast Networks Inc. could force technology companies to delay or block innovative products that give consumers more control.
The case is Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios v. Grokster, 04-480.
Internet case pits artists against civil libertarians
Tuesday, January 25, 2005 Posted: 4:39 PM EST (2139 GMT)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Former Bush administration Supreme Court lawyer Theodore Olson has lined up with Hollywood in a big stakes fight over Internet file sharing.
Olson represented President Bush in the 2000 Bush v. Gore case at the high court and was solicitor general until last summer when he returned to private practice in Washington.
Now he's at the Supreme Court again, this time on the side of artists including Jimmy Buffett, Sheryl Crow, the Dixie Chicks, the Eagles, Reba McEntire, Avril Lavigne and Kenny Rogers.
About 20 briefs were filed this week at the court supporting recording companies and movie studios that are trying to stop online distribution of copyrighted works. Justices hear arguments March 29 in the case that will decide if file-sharing services are responsible when their customers illegally swap songs and movies.
"The world is watching to see whether we really mean what we say when we promise protection to innovation and the creative process," Olson, who filed arguments on behalf of the Defenders of Property Rights, said Tuesday at a news conference.
On the other side are civil libertarians and consumer groups who contend that a defeat for Grokster Ltd. and StreamCast Networks Inc. could force technology companies to delay or block innovative products that give consumers more control.
The case is Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios v. Grokster, 04-480.
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