Cox Communications provides #internet service to >6 million homes & businesses in more than a dozen states. During oral arguments in December, justices from across the ideological spectrum raised concerns that siding with the #music industry could result in #InternetProviders like Cox being forced to cut off access to large account holders such as hospitals & universities because of the illegal acts of individual users.
While #music #piracy is not the existential threat to the #business that it was when the #internet was newer — before paid streaming services became popular — the industry’s lawyers told #SCOTUS that illegal uploading & downloading of music had become faster than ever & continued to rob #artists of their exclusive rights.
They said that Cox had ignored bad actors, helping 60,000 users distribute >10,000 copyrighted songs for free in order to keep subscriber payments flowing.
