British record companies to sue Russian MP3 site
The British recording industry filed a lawsuit against AllofMP3.com, seeking a ruling that is unlikely to be enforceable but joining other similar legal action across Europe.
The UK High Court said it will hear the suit even though AllofMP3.com is based in Russia, the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) said on Monday.
BPI hopes to prove that the Web site is illegal. The group says that AllofMP3 is selling music to UK customers without the permission of copyright owners. The fact that the court accepted the case means that it is convinced that the case is at least arguable, said Larry Cohen, a partner with the law firm McDermott, Will and Emery UK. AllofMP3.com sells music downloads at prices that are far under industry standards. The site's terms of use section says that it is authorized to sell the music through licensing agreements with the Russian Multimedia and Internet Society and the Rightholders Federation for Collective Copyright Management of Works Used Interactively.
