Plaintiffs sued Defendant for secondary copyright infringement, alleging that Defendant, an internet service provider, was liable because it continued to provide internet access to subscribers whose accounts were associated with music piracy. Plaintiffs won a jury verdict for $1 billion, and the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals agreed in part, concluding that Defendant could be contributorily liable for continuing to serve known infringers.
Defendant asked the U.S. Supreme Court to reverse the contributory infringement ruling, arguing that merely providing internet service to subscribers suspected of infringement does not make a service provider liable under the Copyright Act. It contended that secondary liability requires proof that Defendant induced infringement or provided a service designed for infringement, not just knowledge that some subscribers used the service unlawfully.
The Court ruled that Defendant was not contributorily liable and reversed the Fourth Circuit’s decision on that issue. It held that supplying internet access to the general public, even with knowledge that some users may infringe copyrights, is not enough by itself to establish contributory copyright infringement.
The Court ruled this way because contributory liability requires intent, which Plaintiffs could show only by proving that Defendant induced infringement or provided a service tailored to infringement. The Court concluded that Defendant did neither, since it did not encourage infringement and its internet service had substantial lawful uses. The Court also rejected Plaintiffs’ reliance on the DMCA, explaining that the statute creates safe harbors and does not itself impose liability on service providers that fail to qualify for them.
Cox Communications, Inc. v. Sony Music Entertainment, 607 U.S. ___, 2026 WL 815823 (Mar. 25, 2026).