Porn studios to subpoena accused file sharers

The latest wave of copyright litigation against illegal file sharing was ignited by indie filmmakers, including the producers of "The Hurt Locker."

Getting into the action now are creators of such titles as "Tokyo Teens" and "Pornstar Superheroes." Three adult-film producers will soon begin sending subpoenas to Internet service providers, or ISPs, across the United States in an effort to learn the identities of people they claim shared their movies without permission over the Internet, Kenneth Ford, the attorney representing the filmmakers, said today.

Third World Media, an adult-film studio, is one of the companies bringing copyright suits against accused illegal file sharers.
(Credit: Third World Media)
The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia granted motions for early discovery filed by the studios this week, said Ford, who operates an antipiracy company called Adult Copyright Company. When combined, the seven separate complaints accuse more than 5,000 defendants of illegally distributing the studios' films via peer-to-peer services.

"My intention is to file suit against several thousand more illegal downloaders in the next week or two," Ford told CNET. "The coming lawsuits will name in the neighborhood of 10,000 Doe defendants."

Copyright owners typically don't know the identity of an accused illegal file sharer, when first bringing a complaint. Internet Protocol addresses are collected, and each defendant is initially listed as John Doe. To learn the names of the accused, copyright owners need a judge to issue subpoenas to ISPs, who are then compelled to turn over customer records.

Apparently, Ford wants to be to the porn industry what Thomas Dunlap is to indie films. Dunlap, Grubb & Weaver is the law firm that has generated lots of headlines this year by filing copyright suits on behalf of independent filmmakers, including Voltage Pictures, makers of this year's Academy Award winner for Best Picture, "The Hurt Locker."