U.of Oregon Says No to RIAA

NewYorkCountryLawyer writes "The University of Oregon has filed a motion to quash the RIAA's subpoena for information on student identities in what is believed to be the first such motion made by a university with support from the state Attorney General. The motion (pdf) explains that it is impossible to identify the alleged infringers from the information the RIAA has presented: 'Five of the seventeen John Does accessed the content in question from double occupancy dorm rooms at the University. With regard to these Does, the University is able to identify only the room where the content was accessed and whether or not the computer used was a Macintosh or a PC ... The University cannot determine whether the content in question accessed by one occupant as opposed to another, or whether it was accessed instead by a visitor.' The AG's motion further argues (pdf) that "Plaintiffs' subpoena is unduly burdensome and overbroad. It seeks information that the University does not readily possess. In order to attempt to comply with the subpoena, the University would be forced to undertake an investigation to create discovery for Plaintiffs — an obligation not imposed by Rule 45. As the University is unable to identify the alleged infringers with any accuracy, it cannot comply with its federal obligation to notify students potentially affected by the subpoena. One commentator has likened the AG's argument to saying, in effect, that the RIAA's evidence is 'rubbish'."

Comments

Re:this is not how you defeat the riaa

[6Yankee]

once there was a time when keyboards had shift keys

once there was a time when slashdotters knew the difference between its and it's, and how to use full stops

once there was a time

[circletimessquare]

grammar nazis weren't viewed as brittle pedantic mediocre minds

oh no wait, there was never such a time

grammar nazis are a joke and an object of derision

i'm sorry your mind is so inflexible you need to be spoonfed perfect queen's english before your mind can engage with the message before you

i understand that you can't focus on the message because the formatting is too much noise for your weak mind to overcome

Perhaps then my improper formatting serves me in the end. It serves as a filter that brittle inflexible minds can't get past, and so they leave me alone. Perhaps then you understand that I prefer bad formatting and format badly on purpose. Even though I am quite capable of writing normally, I don't do it. On purpose.

imagine that, turd