The owner of Kazaa, Sharman Networks, has lost its bid to counter-sue the Recording Industry Association of America, the National Music Publishers' Association and the Motion Picture Association of America for antitrust violations.
Sharman’s started their cheeky legal action after they were thrown copyright infringement suits by RIAA, NMPA and MPAA. It was always an ambitious attack, and nearly all of Sharman’s anti-trust counterclaims were dismissed by Federal district court judge Stephen Wilson last Thursday.
Senior VP, Business and Legal Affairs for the RIAA, Matthew Oppenheim was, needless to say, happy with the result: “Sharman Networks was grasping at straws to distract the court from their own improper behaviour. We are pleased that the court recognised what we have said all along—that these claims lacked any merit."