RIAA Hits a Wall

Yesterday, the RIAA dropped one of its many file sharing lawsuits after twice being denied a default judgment. In the first decision, a Federal judge in Connecticut concluded that the allegations of distribution and copying were insufficient to state a claim. In denying the first motion for a default judgment, Judge Janet Bond Arterton found RIAA's claim of distribution "problematic." Atlantic Recording Corp v. Brennan, 534 F. Supp. 2d 278 (D. Conn. 2008). In its complaint, the RIAA alleged that the defendant made certain sound recordings available for distribution. To assert a claim of the right to distribute, it must be proved that the defendant actually distributed copies of the copyrighted work. See, e.g., Perfect 10, Inc. v. Amazon.com, Inc., 508 F.3d 1146, 1162 (9th Cir. 2007). This decision only underscores the difficulty the courts have had in addressing digital downloads. See, Motown Record Co., L.P. v. DePietro, 2007 WL 576284 (E.D. Pa. Feb. 16, 2007); Interscope Records v. Duty, 2006 WL 988086 (D. Ariz. April 14, 2006).