First Time Video Gets Green Light in BitTorrent Lawsuit

CHICAGO — First Time Video was given the green light to proceed with its BitTorrent lawsuit against hundreds of people it said had pirated its content.

The Nevada-based company filed suit last year against 500 unknown defendants for infringing on its copyright.

First Time subpoenaed ISPs in an effort to smoke out the illegal poachers, but when the ISPs served its users, 21 of them moved to quash, four moved to dismiss and eight moved to sever.

The company decided however to dismiss certain defendants in June, taking some of the steam out of the suit.

U.S. District Judge Ruben Castillo rejected the remaining motions last week and said that the quash motions did not request the kind of privileged information protected by the federal rules or the Constitution.

Citing a precedent, Castillo wrote, "Anonymous speech does not enjoy absolute protection. Indeed, copyright infringement is not protected by the First Amendment.”

The Judge maintained that "a BitTorrent user may be express himself or herself through the files selected and made available to others in a manner that may be entitled to First Amendment protection," according to the 23-page ruling.

The defendants' motion also relied on the Electronic Communications Privacy Act, under which "a person or entity providing an electronic communication service to the public shall not knowingly divulge the contents of a communication."

Castillo said that although “the putative defendants’ First Amendment right to anonymous speech on the internet is implicated,”  the “courts have consistently held that Internet subscribers do not have a reasonable expectation of privacy in their subscriber information, as they have already conveyed such information to their ISPs."

The court also rejected the defendants' plea that the subpoenas would subject them to undue burden.

Another attempt to sever by the defendants can be filed at a later date, the court ruled.

Related:  

Copyright © 2025 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

Aylo Fined $5 Million as FTC, Utah Settle Safety Practices Complaint

The Federal Trade Commission and the state of Utah on Wednesday settled a complaint against Aylo, requiring the company to pay a $5 million penalty and implement measures to prevent illegal content from appearing on its sites.

XBIZ Amsterdam 2025 Show Schedule Announced

XBIZ is pleased to announce the release of the full show schedule for XBIZ Amsterdam 2025, set to take place Sept. 2-4.

FSC: Missouri Age Verification Rule Will Not Take Effect August 30

The Free Speech Coalition (FSC) announced that Missouri's proposed age verification legislation will not take effect on August 30, as it had originally estimated.

Germany Will Block Payments to AV-Noncompliant Adult Sites as of Dec. 1

Starting Dec. 1, Germany will implement new rules prohibiting financial institutions from providing payment services to adult sites deemed to have inadequate age verification systems and making it easier for the government to target websites mirroring the content of such sites.

FSC Launches Age Verification Toolkit for Adult Websites

The Free Speech Coalition (FSC) announced today that it has launched a comprehensive toolkit to help adult websites navigate age verification laws.

Trump Administration Issues Executive Order Against 'Debanking'

The White House on Thursday issued an executive order limiting financial institutions’ ability to restrict access to financial services for people or groups involved in lawful industries, a longtime goal of adult industry advocates and stakeholders.

Florida AG Sues EU-Based Adult Companies for Failing to Age-Verify Users

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier filed a lawsuit Monday with the 12th Judicial Circuit Court of Florida against five EU-based adult companies for allegedly failing to require age verification before allowing access to adult content.

Arcom Warns 5 Adult Sites Over Age Verification

French media regulator Arcom has sent enforcement notices to the operators of five adult websites that the agency says have failed to implement age verification as required under France’s Security and Regulation of the Digital Space (SREN) law.

FSC: Identity Theft Targeting Adult Performers

The Free Speech Coalition has issued an alert warning of an individual found to be targeting adult performers for identity theft.

European Commission to Assess Pornhub, XVideos, XNXX Compliance With Digital Services Act

The European Commission plans to conduct a study to determine how well adult sites Pornhub, XVideos and XNXX are addressing illegal content and other potential harms under the EU’s Digital Services Act.

Show More