TekSavvy will turn over the names of 2,000 alleged movie pirates
In a blow to internet freeloaders nationwide, a federal court decision released on Thursday compels TekSavvy, the Ontario-based discount broadband provider, to disclose the names of about 2,000 customers who are accused of having illegally downloaded movies. The case was initiated by Voltage Pictures, a U.S. production company with stakes in many movies, including 2010 Oscar winner The Hurt Locker.
Despite an attempt at legal intervention by the Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic, judge Kevin Aalto determined that there wasn’t sufficient evidence to conclude that Voltage was engaging in “copyright trolling,” a term for when a company sends out flimsy copyright claims in an attempt to intimidate people into settling outside of court. And so Voltage is entitled to know who the alleged movie pirates are.
In the Star, technology writer Michael Geist points out that the news isn’t all bad for Canadian internet users. The court placed a number of restrictions on what Voltage can do with Teksavvy’s customer information. Voltage’s letters to the alleged copyright violators will be subject to court approval, and TekSavvy will have to be compensated for whatever money it spends complying with Voltage’s demands. And then there’s the matter of Canada’s $5,000 cap on damages awarded for non-commercial copyright infringement, which makes it difficult for copyright trolls to turn much of a profit here.
All of which is to say, things could be worse for the movie-downloading public. Even so, we’d recommend watching The Hurt Locker on Netflix, instead.
![](http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https://torontolife.com/city/teksavvy-voltage-pictures-movie-pirates/&title=TekSavvy will turn over the names of 2,000 alleged movie pirates&picture=https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/teksavvy-versus-pirates-624x395.jpg&description=[caption id="attachment_261484" align="alignnone" width="656"] (Image: Pirate flag: Chris Evans)[/caption]
In a blow to internet freeloaders nationwide, a federal court decision released on Thursday compels TekSavvy, the Ontario-based discount broadband provider, to disclose the names of about 2,000 customers who are accused of having illegally downloaded movies. The case was initiated by Voltage Pictures, a U.S. production company with stakes in many movies, including 2010 Oscar winner The Hurt Locker.
Despite an attempt at legal intervention by the Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic, judge Kevin Aalto determined that there wasn't sufficient evidence to conclude that Voltage was engaging in "copyright trolling," a term for when a company sends out flimsy copyright claims in an attempt to intimidate people into settling outside of court. And so Voltage is entitled to know who the alleged movie pirates are.
In the Star, technology writer Michael Geist points out that the news isn't all bad for Canadian internet users. The court placed a number of restrictions on what Voltage can do with Teksavvy's customer information. Voltage's letters to the alleged copyright violators will be subject to court approval, and TekSavvy will have to be compensated for whatever money it spends complying with Voltage's demands. And then there's the matter of Canada's $5,000 cap on damages awarded for non-commercial copyright infringement, which makes it difficult for copyright trolls to turn much of a profit here.
All of which is to say, things could be worse for the movie-downloading public. Even so, we'd recommend watching The Hurt Locker on Netflix, instead.){kind=link}
Shouldn’t that be Voltage’s logo in the image? Obviously TekSavvy had no say in the matter. Very poor choice.
Yeah, I agree. TekSavvy is not suing anyone in this case. I also think Voltage is attempting to scare off down loaders. They will, as has been said before, scare off the “occasional Down Loaders” but will not stop the chronic user looking for that 100,000th movie to add to his/her collection!
Hollywood picking on the little guy to pick on the littler guy.
It’s about time the content owners started to fight back against piracy. You can never stop it, but you can slow it down enough so that the people who create those great movies and tv shows we love, can afford to continue and also to be able to offer their content outside the big distribution monopolies like Dish. There was never a focus from content owners to go after pirates because there was not enough perceived value in the over the top market. That is now changing. A few lawyers letters and well publicized court cases will cause a Napster-like effect that will offer us all better quality, less expensive and more accessible entertainment without having to worry about viruses and sneaking around trying to download a 2gb movie that for some reason plays back in another language. The music industry went through the same transition. From expensive vinyl at a record store to totally free Napster to iTunes, Songza, Spotify, Rdio offering inexpensive options to get your favourite music. Voltage is the Metallica of the TV era.
Oh no – will they know if i’ve illegally downloaded porn as well?
Well….wouldn’t that be awkward?