In December 2013, U + C Rechtsanwälte (Urmann + Collegen Rechtsanwaltsgesellschaft mbH) commenced issuing cease and desist letters concerning alleged copyright infringements arising from the streaming of pornographic films via the website www.redtube.com. The aforementioned website is a streaming platform offering access to numerous pornographic films.
Based on the information available to us, it is probable that the claims for information asserted before the Cologne Regional Court (which enabled the claimants to identify the alleged infringers) and the Cologne Regional Court's decisions cited in the cease and desist letters were issued based on facts that were either not clearly presented or were misunderstood by some chambers of the Regional Court. It is now highly probable that some chambers of the Regional Court did not recognize that the alleged infringements pertained to copyright violations through the streaming of films.
While U + C Rechtsanwälte have disputed this, stating that some judges of the Cologne Regional Court had requested further explanations and expert opinions, and only then issued the decisions based on the streaming facts. If this assertion by U + C Rechtsanwälte were indeed accurate, it would imply that some judges of the Cologne Regional Court, after at least a preliminary review, actually considered the streaming of films via redtube.com to be illegal. However, this assertion by U + C Rechtsanwälte now appears to be highly improbable.
U+C Rechtsanwälte have announced their intention to assert claims for information before other regional courts and to issue further cease and desist letters. However, it remains to be seen whether additional cease and desist letters will actually be issued and how other regional courts will assess the present facts.
It also remains entirely unclear how the investigation firm purportedly documented and ascertained, in a legally permissible and evidentially sound manner, that the specified work was "streamed" via the given IP address at the times indicated in the cease and desist letters. Furthermore, it is currently not comprehensible how the alleged rights holder, "The Archive AG," claims to have legally obtained these IP addresses.
It is also legally entirely unresolved whether the conduct of the warned parties, as described in the cease and desist letters, even constitutes a legal infringement. The legal situation on this matter is unclear and remains contentious among legal professionals.
The Federal Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection, in any case, does not consider the viewing of streams on the internet to constitute a copyright infringement. This was communicated by the Ministry in response to a minor inquiry from the Left Party parliamentary group. However, there are no relevant court rulings on this specific legal issue yet. The Federal Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection therefore expressly emphasizes that the question of "whether the use of streaming services constitutes a reproduction" has not yet been clarified by the highest courts. The Federal Ministry further stated that this legal question could only be resolved by the European Court of Justice (ECJ).
Therefore, should you receive a cease and desist letter concerning an alleged copyright infringement through the streaming of a film or other work, you should urgently consult an experienced lawyer or specialist lawyer specializing in copyright law. Under no circumstances should you make declarations or payments to the issuing law firm without prior legal review.
Our lawyers have already handled numerous cease and desist letters concerning alleged copyright infringements related to the streaming of films.
Should you have received a cease and desist letter regarding an alleged copyright infringement, our lawyers are available to provide consultation and answer any questions you may have.
An initial telephone assessment is provided free of charge.
Should you then decide to engage our firm, the costs of our services will, of course, be communicated to you prior to formal instruction.
Goldberg Lawyers 2013/2014
Attorney Michael Ullrich, LL.M. (Information Law)
Specialist Attorney for Information Technology Law
Email: info@goldberg.de
