Facts

Hotfile Corp. was a company that streamed online movies and tv shows. Various studios, including Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. and Disney Enterprises Inc., filed suit against Hotfile for copyright infringement.

PLAINTIFF'S CONTENTIONS:
The studios claimed that Hotfile actively encouraged users to engage in piracy by uploading copyrighted materials. Hotfile would pay its users based on how many other people downloaded those files, regardless of whether they were copyrighted and creating an incentive for the users to upload copyrighted works.

DEFENDANT'S CONTENTIONS:
Hotfile argued that it was protected under the safe harbor rule of the Digitial Millennium Copyright Act.

Result

The court denied Hotfile's motion for partial summary judgment based on the DMCA. The court granted Disney's motion for summary judgment on Hotfile's DMCA claim and its vicarious liability theory. Both parties' requests to strike certain reports and testimony from the record were denied as moot. Finally, a request to use a certain exhibit at trial was granted.

Other Information

FILING DATE: Feb. 8, 2011.