Negligence Claims Dismissed in Porn Piracy Case

NEW YORK — Corbin Fisher's high-profile suit against a pair of roommates sued for allegedly trading porn online was dismissed this week.

In the original suit filed at U.S. District Court in New York, Corbin Fisher charged that defendants Cary Tabora and Schulyer Whetstone, both roommates and named in another now-dismissed porn BitTorrent piracy suit involving some 840 infringements, were responsible for infringement for poaching and trading "Corbin Fisher's Down on the Farm" through a BitTorrent network, or at least one of them is.

Corbin Fisher, in its complaint, said that Tabora spoke with its attorneys and admitted that it was Whetstone who was the party who illegally and distributed the movie.

"In fact, Tabora stated emphatically, 'I was negligent' in allowing Whetstone to use his [Wi-Fi] Internet connection to illegally pirate content, and that he was aware that it would eventually cause legal problems for him," the suit said.

But U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan said that Corbin Fisher's state law negligence claim was preempted by federal copyright law and can't be brought. Kaplan pointed to Section 301 of the Copyright Act, which allows preemption with respect to other laws.

Other claims were dismissed because the title of the film in the complaint, "Corbin Fisher's Down on the Farm," didn't match the title in the copyright registration, "Corbin Fisher Amateur College Men Down on the Farm."

But Kaplan did allow Corbin Fisher the opportunity to amend direct and contributory infringement claims no later than July 25.

The case gained notoriety after the Electronic Frontier Foundation took sides, filing a friend-of-the-court brief for the defendants.

EFF postulated that if Corbin Fisher was successful in the case, Wi-Fi providers could be held responsible for users' behavior and public access to the Internet would be sharply reduced because of liability fears.

Corbin Fisher, however, said at the time that the EFF is trying to "re-frame" the case as a wholesale opposition to Wi-Fi copyright negligence claims in commercial environments.

Mitch Stoltz, a staff attorney at the EFF who worked on the amicus brief, told XBIZ "the EFF is very happy with this result," noting that the judge signaled that Corbin Fisher "is likely to lose the copyright claim against Cary Tabora if it re-files the case, because simply providing an Internet connection for a housemate isn't enough to make Tabora liable for the housemate's illegal downloading, even if he knew about it."

Corbin Fisher counsel Marc Randazza did not respond to queries whether he would retry the case as regards to the copyright claims.

View dismissal order

Related:  

Copyright © 2024 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More News

Skinfluential Management's FansFuel Acquires Fanwire

FansFuel has acquired creator account management tool Fanwire.

Nebraska AV Bill Moves Forward Despite Privacy, Free Speech Concerns

Nebraska’s unicameral Legislature has given first-round approval to LB 1092, the state’s version of the age verification bills being sponsored around the country by anti-porn religious conservative activists.

AEBN Celebrates 25th Anniversary

The Adult Entertainment Broadcast Network (AEBN) is celebrating its 25th year in business this week.

Performers in Meta Blacklisting Lawsuit Seek to Preserve Antitrust Claims

Adult Performance Artists Guild board officers Alana Evans, Kelly Pierce and Ruby have informed a California court that, although they want to drop their lawsuit claiming that Meta conspired with OnlyFans to blacklist rival premium fan platforms’ talent, they may still pursue antitrust claims in the future.

FSC, Co-Plaintiffs to Ask US Supreme Court to Review Constitutionality of Texas Age Verification Law

Free Speech Coalition (FSC) and its co-plaintiffs in the challenge to Texas’ controversial age verification law have petitioned the United States Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit to stay its recent decision upholding the law, because they intend to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court to review the law’s constitutionality.

FSC Vows to Fight Florida Age Verification Law

Free Speech Coalition (FSC) has issued a statement vowing to continue fighting Florida’s new age verification law, which was signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday as part of a comprehensive bill targeting minors’ use of social media.

Kansas Republican Aims to Create New Bureaucracy to 'Investigate' Porn Websites

Republican state legislators succeeded Monday in moving forward Kansas’ version of the age verification bills being sponsored around the country by anti-porn religious conservative activists, despite serious concerns raised by House Democrats about the cost of establishing a new bureaucracy tasked with investigating websites for pornographic content.

SK Intertainment Launches 'Skinfluential Management' Agency, FansFuel Joint Venture

Mr. Skin/Mr. Man parent company SK Intertainment has launched new creator agency Skinfluential Management, as well as a new joint venture with Showbizz Media's creator stats and affiliate marketing platform, FansFuel.

Industry Attorney, Free Speech Champion Clyde DeWitt Passes Away at 75

Noted industry attorney Clyde DeWitt passed away on Friday in Las Vegas at 75, according to friends and colleagues.

APClips Names Avery Jane 'Creator of the Month'

APClips has named Avery Jane its Creator of the Month for March.

Show More