Copyright Trolls and the Potential Impact on Contributory Copyright Infringement: What Adult Film Companies’ Lawsuits may Indicate about Internet Service Providers’ Liability  

A pornographic production company has exploited the legal system by filing lawsuits alleging copyright infringement. The company tracks potential infringers’ IP addresses and subpoenas their internet service providers (“ISPs”) to locate defendants. Other copyright holders utilize similar tactics to bring claims of contributory copyright infringement. ISPs are privy to their users’ information, and copyright trolls rely on subpoenas to gather essential data. Since the information supplied by ISPs is vital to pursuing these contributory copyright infringement claims, ISPs may possibly be held liable for their involvement in their subscribers’ conduct.