MP3 download site to pay up
2004-04-26 10:14
Beijing - A Chinese website offering MP3 music downloads has been ordered by a local court to pay compensation to two Hong Kong-based entertainment companies in a landmark ruling, state media reported on Monday.
The Beijing No1 Intermediate People's Court told www.chinamp3.com` to pay $19 000 to Hong Kong Go East Entertainment Co and Sony Music Entertainment (Hong Kong), the China Daily said.
The decision could be crucial in China, which is still regularly accused of gross violations of intellectual property rights despite more than two years as a member in the World Trade Organisation.
The paper quoted entertainment industry insiders as saying the judgment would encourage more music producers to safeguard their rights against illegal online MP3 downloads.
Song Ke, managing director of Taihe Rye Music, said that besides MP3s, discs, tapes, and ring tone downloads for cellphones could also be targeted in future efforts to safeguard intellectual property rights.
The website provided downloads for 35 songs by Canto-pop singer Kelly Chen, whose copyright is owned by Go East, and 11 songs by Lo Hau Yam, an artist who is distributed by Sony Music, the paper reported.
"The two Hong Kong companies never authorised any person to use them online," it cited the court verdict as saying.
Bai Nian'en, the lawyer representing Beijing-based Shiji Yuebo Scientific Co, which owns the website, said the company would appeal the ruling.
Bai said the website only provided a link for downloads, instead of direct download services.
"We did not intentionally violate the intellectual property rights of the two entertainment companies, so we need not shoulder responsibility for rights infringement," Bai said.
Judge Liu Yong disputed this, saying that the accused website's MP3 download service provided not only links to downloads, but direct download services.