Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation & Ors v Sky UK Ltd & Ors

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation & Ors v Sky UK Ltd & Ors

The court has jurisdiction under s97A CDPA 1988 to grant a blocking order against the ISPs in respect of the target websites because the operators of the Popcorn Time related sites are jointly liable with host website operators for copyright infringement. The ISPs' services are used to facilitate such infringement....

Source-derived case information.

Parties
Claimant: Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation; Claimant: Universal City Studios Productions LLP; Claimant: Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.; Claimant: Paramount Pictures Corporation; Claimant: Disney Enterprises, Inc; Claimant: Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc.; Defendant: Sky UK Limited; Defendant: British Telecommunications PLC; Defendant: EE Limited; Defendant: TalkTalk Telecom Limited; Defendant: Virgin Media Limited
Jurisdiction
England and Wales
Judgment Date
28 April 2015
Procedural Posture
Civil (copyright Infringement) / Judgment on Application for Website Blocking Order Under S97 a CDPA 1988
Outcome
Application granted (except for Movie Panda, which was adjourned)
Legal Topics
Copyright Infringement, Website Blocking Orders, ISP Liability, Section 97 a Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, Proportionality of Injunctive Relief
Intellectual Property Law Copyright Infringement Website Blocking Orders ISP Liability Section 97 a Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 Proportionality of Injunctive Relief

Source-derived case record

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Parties

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

Claimant

Universal City Studios Productions LLP

Claimant

Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

Claimant

Paramount Pictures Corporation

Claimant

Disney Enterprises, Inc

Claimant

Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc.

Claimant

Sky UK Limited

Defendant

British Telecommunications PLC

Defendant

EE Limited

Defendant

TalkTalk Telecom Limited

Defendant

Virgin Media Limited

Defendant

Procedural Posture

Civil (copyright Infringement) / Judgment on Application for Website Blocking Order Under S97 a CDPA 1988

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the court has jurisdiction under s97A CDPA 1988 to grant a blocking order against ISPs in respect of Popcorn Time and other piracy websites
  2. 2 Whether the operators of the target websites are infringing copyright by communication to the public, authorisation, or joint tortfeasance
  3. 3 Whether the operators of the target websites use the services of the ISPs to infringe copyright

Ratio Decidendi

The court has jurisdiction under s97A CDPA 1988 to grant a blocking order against the ISPs in respect of the target websites because the operators of the Popcorn Time related sites are jointly liable with host website operators for copyright infringement. The ISPs' services are used to facilitate such infringement. The order is proportionate and justified to prevent both dissemination and operation of the Popcorn Time application, which has no legitimate purpose.

Court Disposition

Application granted (except for Movie Panda, which was adjourned)

Orders

  • ISPs ordered to block access to the specified target websites (including Popcorn Time related sites) and any notified IP addresses or URLs whose sole or predominant purpose is to enable or facilitate access to those sites or use of the Popcorn Time application, within 10 working days of notification.
  • Claimants permitted to update the list of blocked IP addresses and URLs as specified in the order.