Video-sharing platform Vimeo has won the latest skirmish in a 16-year-long legal battle with divisions of Universal Music Group.<\/p>\n
As reported by reported by<\/a> Reuters <\/i>, The US Second Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of Vimeo on Monday (January 13), dismissing copyright infringement claims brought by major record labels, including Universal Music Group’s Capitol Records<\/strong> and several EMI<\/strong> subsidiaries.<\/p>\n The lawsuit, filed<\/a> in 2009, centered on Vimeo<\/b>‘s \u201cLip Dub Stars\u201d channel, where users posted videos containing copyrighted music. The record labels argued that Vimeo ignored clear signs of copyright infringement when its employees encountered recognizable recordings on the platform.<\/p>\n Other labels listed as plaintiffs in the lawsuit include Caroline Records, Virgin Records America, <\/b>and Stone Diamond Music Corporation.<\/b><\/p>\n The appeals court upheld a lower court\u2019s decision that Vimeo is protected under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act<\/b>‘s (DMCA) “safe harbor” provisions. Established during the Clinton administration, these provisions typically shield internet providers and intermediaries from liability for user-posted content if they respond to takedown notices.<\/p>\n \u201cThe district court rejected Plaintiffs\u2019 contention that Vimeo had actual or red flag knowledge of the infringement or the right and ability to control the infringing activity, and therefore lost entitlement to the safe harbor.”<\/p>\n Judge Pierre N. Leval, US Second Circuit Court of Appeals<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n \u201cThe district court rejected Plaintiffs\u2019 contention that Vimeo had actual or red flag knowledge of the infringement or the right and ability to control the infringing activity, and therefore lost entitlement to the safe harbor,\u201d stated the ruling, which can be read in full here<\/a>.<\/p>\n The court ruled that \u201cVimeo was entitled to the DMCA\u2019s safe harbor because: although there was evidence that Vimeo employees had interacted with videos containing infringing content, there was insufficient evidence to prove that it would have been obvious to those employees that the content of the videos was neither authorized by the rightsholder nor fair use.\u201d<\/p>\n The labels also failed to show that \u201cVimeo had sufficient \u2018right and ability to control\u2019 within the meaning of the statute to lose entitlement to the safe harbor,\u201d US Circuit Judge Pierre N. Leval <\/b>said in the ruling. US Circuit Judges Barrington D. Parker <\/b>and Sarah A.L. Merriam<\/b> joined in the opinion.<\/p>\n Writing for the panel, Leval stressed that even if unauthorized use of music might seem likely to an average person, \u201cthat would not make it obvious that a particular video lacked authorization to use the music.\u201d<\/p>\n The ruling also addressed the labels’ claim that Vimeo exercised substantial control over user content through its ability to promote or demote posts. The court dismissed this argument, saying Vimeo\u2019s content moderation affected only a minimal percentage of user uploads.<\/p>\n \u201cFor example, in 2012, 43,000<\/b> new videos per day were posted on Vimeo, which annualized to over 15 million<\/b> new videos. During that year, Vimeo had only 74<\/b> employees. Apart from how minimal an intrusion it is for a staff member to select a video to receive an indication of approval, the number of videos that 74 staff members could have evaluated and emphasized amounted to no more than an insignificant percentage of those posted,\u201d the ruling said.<\/p>\n \u201cCalling attention to selected videos by giving them a sign of approval or displaying them on a Staff Picks channel (or the contrary, by demoting them) did not restrict the freedom of users to post whatever videos they wished,\u201d the judges added.<\/p>\n Additionally, the court determined that denying Vimeo protection under the DMCA would burden the company with \u201cunsustainable costs.\u201d<\/p>\n Vimeo welcomed the decision, with a spokesperson telling<\/a> Reuters <\/i>that the decision “ensures Vimeo can continue empowering innovation and artistic expression while respecting intellectual property rights.”<\/p>\n The decision also affirmed that DMCA protections apply to recordings made both before and after 1972, building on a previous Second Circuit ruling that overturned<\/a> a state court decision in a case involving Grooveshark<\/b> and Universal Music Group<\/b>.<\/p>\n\n