EIRCOM HAS rejected claims by four major record companies that, as the largest broadband internet service provider in the State, it must bear some liability for the illegal free downloading of music by computer users.
The companies have claimed Eircom's networks are being used "on a grand scale" for illegal downloading.
Mr Justice Peter Kelly yesterday said he expected to fix a July date for the hearing of the action brought by the record companies against Eircom. The action is the first here aimed at internet service providers, rather than individual illegal downloaders, and reflects growing concern within the music industry about the scale and cost of illegal downloading.
The latest figures, for 2006, indicate that 20 billion music files were illegally downloaded worldwide in that year alone while the industry estimates that, for every single legal download, there are 20 illegal ones.
The case was initiated last March. Eircom has filed a defence rejecting the claims and contending the record companies have established no cause of action against it. Discovery issues are being finalised and the sides expected the case to be ready for hearing within weeks.
Mr Justice Kelly was told yesterday by Paul Coughlan, for Eircom, that there would be considerable technical evidence in the case relating to the claims that his side was failing to remove copyright-infringing material from its systems.
Eircom claims the companies have failed to identify such "infringing material" and, if they have identified such material, Eircom claims such material cannot be removed with damaging Eircom's systems/equipment or internet services.
Eircom also believes that direct evidence, as well as affidavit evidence, was necessary for the fair disposal of the issues involved, counsel said.
The action has been brought by EMI Records (Ireland), Sony BMG Music Entertainment (Ireland), Universal Music (Ireland) and Warner Music (Ireland).
They are seeking orders under the Copyright and Related Rights Acts 2000 restraining Eircom from infringing copyright in the sound recordings owned by, or exclusively licensed to them, by making available (through Eircom's internet service facilities) copies of those recordings to the public without the companies' consent.
Willie Kavanagh, managing director of EMI Ireland and chairman of the Irish Recorded Music Association, has said that, because of illegal downloading and other factors, the Irish music industry is experiencing "a dramatic and accelerating decline" in income.
The Irish market for sound recordings suffered a decline in total sales from €146 million in 2001 to €102 million last year, a fall of 30 per cent. A substantial portion of that decline was due to illegal peer-to-peer downloading services and the increasing availability of broadband internet access here, he said.
The record companies believed greater availability of broadband will lead to a further escalation in unlawful distribution of recordings, he added.
The record companies are challenging Eircom's refusal to use filtering technology or other measures to block, or filter, material from its network which is being used to download music. The companies say certain specialised software, such as that provided by the US-based Audible Magic Corporation, can block specified recordings from being shared.
