Spanish Courts ignore Sinde principle

Another Spanish court has found another internet service free from liability for the actions of its users, holding that Cinetube, which redirects web-users to film files online (the majority of which are unlicensed), free from liability for copyright infringement. Spanish courts have generally not been willing to hold such websites liable, especially if they are not run for profit. The landmark precedent in Spanish law involves the P2P file sharing service Sharemula, again held free from liability, although that case was distinguished in another more recent Spanish case where the operator of a file-sharing links service who profited from ad sales and SMS services was found liable.

However, Spain is on the brink of a major change with the proposed implementation of the “Sinde” law and whilst the legislation is currently subject to a challenge in the country’s Supreme Court, Cinetube is known to be high up on the target list of the content industries, who hope the new web-blocking law (if and when implemented) will overrule past precedents and enable them to force ISPs to block access to websites that link to illegal content.

http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/industry/legal-and-management/spanish-court-dismisses-case-against-major-1006189552.story