October 11, 2022
Publishers File Final Brief Supporting Summary Judgement in Case Against Internet Archive for Blatant Scanning and Distribution of Literary Works on Industrial Scale
On Friday, October 7th publishers filed their final reply brief supporting summary judgment against Internet Archive (IA) for its mass systematic copyright infringement.
In the reply brief, Publishers argue that IA’s opposition to their motion jettisons any reliance on its untenable first sale argument, an about face that reflects the fact that “Congress repeatedly rejected a digital first sale doctrine, and no court has ever held or suggested that the mere possession of physical copies of books – or records or films – allows any party to engage in mass digitization and systematic worldwide distribution of newly created ebooks to the public.”
Publishers further note that IA’s argument fails to rebut multiple controlling decisions in the Second Circuit that IA’s conduct is not excused by fair use.
“In the end,” say the publishers, “Internet Archive asks this Court to adopt a radical proposition that would turn copyright law upside down by allowing IA to convert millions of physical books into ebook formats and distribute them worldwide without paying rightsholders.”
Read the full brief here.