Breaking Glass Pictures, LLC v. Does 1–188
United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri
2013 WL 4551773, 4:13–CV–00388 (E.D. Mo. Aug. 28, 2013)
- Written by Brianna Pine, JD
Facts
Breaking Glass Pictures, LLC (BGP) (plaintiff) sued 188 unknown individuals (Does) (defendants) for copyright infringement, alleging they illegally shared BGP’s movie 6 Degrees of Hell using BitTorrent, a peer-to-peer file-sharing client. BitTorrent allowed users to share large files by breaking them into smaller pieces and enabling the small pieces to be uploaded and downloaded simultaneously from multiple users, forming a “swarm.” BGP claimed that the 188 Does participated in a swarm lasting approximately nine weeks that allowed them and others to steal the movie. Acting sua sponte under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 21, the district court moved to sever and dismiss Does 2 through 188.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Fleissig, J.)
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