File-sharing case offers unlikely alliances
LOS ANGELES — Religious and other conservative groups have shown little love for Hollywood or the recording industry over the years, decrying everything from explicit rap lyrics to Janet Jackson’s bared breast at the Super Bowl.
But a cadre of those groups are stepping up to back the entertainment industry in its moment of need: a high-stakes battle against online file-sharing services that has reached the nation’s highest court.
File-swapping services make pornography easily accessible to minors, the social conservatives submit. The entertainment companies, meanwhile, blame them sharing for declining sales and lost revenue.
An unlikely alliance thus formed.
“Hollywood is definitely a strange bedfellow to most of us,” said Jim Backlin, vice president of legislative affairs for the Christian Coalition of America. “Our goal was to cut down child pornography and other kinds of pornography, and if for some reason we were allied with the Hollywood types this time, so be it.”
On the other side, the file-sharing companies have also found unlikely allies, including libraries concerned that tighter copyright controls would stifle free speech.
The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear arguments March 29 in the Internet file-sharing case.
The case stems from a lawsuit filed by Hollywood movie studios and recording companies against Grokster Inc., which distributes the Grokster peer-to-peer software, and StreamCast Networks, which runs Morpheus. Lower courts have ruled that the companies are not liable for what computer users do with their software, even if it’s illegal.
Literally billions of dollars are at stake.
On the entertainment side of the dispute are online services that legally sell music or movies, including Napster Inc., MusicNet and CinemaNow, as well as professional sports leagues such as the National Football League, who all worry about unauthorized distribution of their broadcasts.
Attorneys general for 39 states and Guam, meanwhile, have sided with the social conservatives, raising concern over the potential for minors to stumble upon pornography.
The federal government also filed a brief. It argues that while file-sharing technology has legitimate uses, Morpheus and Grokster profit by encouraging computer users to copy music and films without paying for them. Not to be outdone, file-sharing companies have support from a big slice of the technology sector.
“If Hollywood gets its way, they’ll be granted de facto control over, frankly, the vast majority of communications and technology today,” said Will Rodger, PR chief for the Computer & Communications Industry Association.
The companies fear a ruling against the file-sharing services would leave them susceptible to lawsuits if they develop devices or technologies not approved by the entertainment industry.
The outcome of the case and its impact on current copyright laws will undoubtedly shape the relationship between the entertainment industry and companies that make the products people use to watch movies or listen to music.