BMG and other music companies have settled their copyright infringement lawsuit against internet service provider Altice USA after 20 months of litigation. The settlement details emerged through a recent court order approving the dismissal stipulation.

The original lawsuit, filed by BMG, Concord, and UMG Recordings, accused Altice of failing to address repeat copyright infringement by its subscribers. The plaintiffs claimed Altice profited from these violations, seeking up to $1 billion in damages.

While specific settlement terms remain undisclosed, Altice's Q2 2024 earnings report revealed $46.6 million in "restructuring, impairments and other operating items," including "significant legal settlements." This marks a substantial increase from the $5.2 million reported in the same category the previous year.

The settlement may impact ongoing litigation against Altice, including a separate $1 billion copyright lawsuit filed by Warner Music, Sony Music, and others in December 2023. Similar legal battles continue with other ISPs:

• Frontier Communications faces ongoing litigation
• Grande Communications received a $47 million judgment
• Verizon faces a new lawsuit filed in mid-July
• Cox Communications recently appealed to the Supreme Court following a vacated $1 billion verdict

The court dismissed the BMG case with prejudice, with each party bearing its own costs and legal fees.

Related Articles

Previous Articles