Verdict and Reactions
The four operators of the site were convicted by Stockholm district court on 17 April 2009 and sentenced to one year in jail each and a total of 30 million Swedish kronor (approximately US$3.5 million, €2.7 million) in fines and damages. The court found that the defendants were all guilty of accessory to crime against copyright law, strengthened by the commercial and organized nature of the activity. The court, however, never presented its corpus delicti (that is, it never attempted to prove that a crime was committed, but it succeeded in proving that someone was an accessory to that crime). Prosecutor Håkan Roswall cited in his closing arguments a Supreme Court of Sweden opinion that a person holding the jacket of someone committing battery can be held responsible for the battery. In its verdict, the court stated that "responsibility for assistance can strike someone who has only insignificantly assisted in the principal crime", referring to a Supreme Court precedent where an accountant was sentenced for accessory to crime even though his actions were not criminal per se. The court rejected the charge of preparation to crime against copyright law. The lawyers of all four defendants appealed the verdict, with Lundström's lawyers filing their appeal immediately on the day the verdict was given. The entertainment industry lawyers appealed as well, on reintroducing the dismissed charge and on the method of calculating damages, which in their opinion does not fully cover the lost income.
| Company | Nationality | Type of Industry | Compensation for damages (SEK) | Costs of litigation (SEK) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20th Century Fox | Motion Picture | 10,867,460 ($1,285,354.91) | 333,500 ($39,444.89) | |
| Mars Media | Motion Picture | 4,450,991 ($526,443.45) | 333,500 ($39,444.89) | |
| Columbia Pictures | Motion Picture | 4,184,444 ($494,917.45) | 333,500 ($39,444.89) | |
| Yellow Bird | Motion Picture | 3,150,000 ($372,568.01) | 484,920 ($57,354.18) | |
| Warner Bros | Motion Picture | 2,898,225 ($342,789.18) | 592,000 ($70,019.13) | |
| EMI Music Sweden | Music | 1,798,975 ($212,774.77) | 264,000 ($31,224.74) | |
| Warner Music Sweden | Music | 1,616,759 ($191,223.07) | 54,000 ($6,386.88) | |
| Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer | Motion Picture | 1,394,831 ($372,568.01) | - | |
| Universal Music | Music | 814,339 ($96,316.40) | 156,000 ($18,450.98) | |
| Sony Music Entertainment Sweden | Music | 457,675 ($54,131.76) | 468,000 ($55,352.96) | |
| Playground Music | Music | 310,794 ($36,759.33) | 156,000 ($18,450.98) | |
| Nordisk Film | Motion Picture | 225,000 ($26,612.00) | 53,880 ($6,372.68) | |
| Bonnier Amigo Music Group | Music | 47,349 ($5,600.22) | 102,000 ($12,064.10) | |
| Blizzard Entertainment | Video games | - | 25,000 ($2,956.88) | |
| Activision | Video games | - | 12,500 ($1,478.44) | |
| Total: | 32,216,842 ($3,810,465.01) | 3,368,800 ($398,446.70) |
File sharing researcher Daniel Johansson called the ruling the most important file sharing related verdict in Europe so far, comparing it to the Napster verdict in the US. The sentence is the longest ever awarded under Swedish copyright law, and the prison time and damage compensation high by Swedish standards. While most legal experts expected the court to find the defendants guilty, they were surprised at the harsh verdict. Sociology of law professor Håkan Hyden criticised the exceptionally harsh sentence on both the prison time and large amount of compensation awarded, and some legal analysts expect the punishments to be radically lowered in higher courts.
The international public following the trial received the verdict with varying opinions. Some high-profile copyright holders publicly defended the verdict, with former Beatles member Paul McCartney commenting to the BBC that "if you get on a bus, you've got to pay. And I think it's fair, you should pay for your ticket." Mark Mulligan from Forrester Research considered the verdict very important for music industry PR, and copyright holder organisations indeed praised it as a landmark verdict. Likewise, The European Association of Internet Service Providers welcomed the verdict, commending judicial resolution to copyright infringement issues over internet filtering or three strikes policies. The Economist went further by criticising that the sentence might not have been strong enough to act as a deterrent for setting up similar services in the future.
Some copyright holders took a different view however: Snow Patrol vocalist Gary Lightbody commented in interview that "they shouldn't have been jailed... the punishment doesn't fit the crime." In a column in Dagens Nyheter, composer and professor Roger Wallis, who was involved in the trial, condemned the verdict and its effects as paralyzing Swedish IT innovation on new ways of doing business.
At the end of May 2009, Swedish Minister for Culture Lena Adelsohn Liljeroth made a speech to The Swedish Society of Popular Music Composers, expressing her opinion that "I was among those pleased about the Pirate Bay verdict." In accordance with the ministerstyre in the Constitution of Sweden, it is unconstitutional for ministers to influence ongoing cases, and many political commentators criticised the minister's statement. Max Andersson, member of the Committee on the Constitution in the Parliament of Sweden, requested the committee to review the incident. The committee pointed out the independence of judicial bodies and the government, and reminded ministers to exercise caution in their statements, but saw no need for further action or comment.
Read more about this topic: The Pirate Bay Trial
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