STREAMCAST NETWORKS™ CEO MICHAEL WEISS COMMENTS ON THE PETITION OF THE RIAA AND MPAA TO THE SUPREME COURT FOR A WRIT OF CERTIORARI |
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Los Angeles, October 8, 2004 - Hollywood is attempting to take its war against information technology and innovation to the United States Supreme Court. Its petition for certiorari, filed with the Supreme Court today, is a doomed effort to have the High Court review and overturn the affirmative Federal Court of Appeals ruling after the three judge panel devoted a considerable amount of time and attention to reviewing the law and the evidence and concluded with a unanimous decision in favor of StreamCast. "It is our belief that there is no need for the Supreme Court to review the matter. We believe that Judge Wilson's ruling, as well as that of the Judges in the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals affirming the ruling, was based on a thorough examination of the factual evidence and legal arguments presented in the case," stated Michael Weiss, CEO of StreamCast Networks, developer of the Morpheus peer-to-peer software. "The plaintiff's petition today is an indictment against the Supreme Court's 1984 Betamax decision itself. The law is clear and has already been decided. No matter how many more hired gun attorneys they bring in to the case, the rhetoric of the RIAA and the MPAA, calling anyone who disagrees with them a 'bad actor,' rings hollow. Companies such as StreamCast are the innovators in the science of peer-to-peer search and file sharing and are responsible for advancing the technology forward, as demonstrated by StreamCast's release this week of Morpheus with NEOnet." We wholeheartedly agree with Circuit Judge Thomas' opinion, "The introduction of new technology is always disruptive to old markets, and particularly to those copyright owners whose works are sold through well-established distribution mechanisms. Yet, history has shown that time and market forces often provide equilibrium in balancing interests, whether the new technology be a player piano, a copier, a tape recorder, a video recorder, a personal computer, a karaoke machine, or an MP3 player. Thus, it is prudent for courts to exercise caution before restructuring liability theories for the purpose of addressing specific market abuses, despite their apparent present magnitude." P2P technology, as developed by StreamCast and other legitimate companies, supports people-to-people communications. It is quickly becoming the front door to a massive global digital public library accessible by all citizens and development efforts at StreamCast to progress the growth of this technology will continue. "We believe the law is clear, and that there is no need for the Supreme Court to review the matter, however, if it determines that it would like to entertain the case we believe that the Supreme Court will uphold the well reasoned opinions of the Ninth Circuit and the District Court," StreamCast Networks Inc., General Counsel/VP , Matthew A. Neco, added.
Brian O'Neal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Copyright © 2004 Streamcast Networks TM All rights reserved. Streamcast Networks, the Morpheus logo, the MusicCity.com logo, and all other trademarks, service marks and trade names of Streamcast Networks appearing on this web site are the property of Streamcast Networks, Inc. Morpheus is a trademark of Streamcast Networks. MusicCity and Streamcast Networks do not condone copyright infringement.
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