I received a Comcast Copyright Infringement Letter and Subpoena – Help!

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I received a Comcast Copyright Infringement  letter and Subpoena – Help!

Did you receive a copyright infringement notice from your internet service provider (ISP) and a subpoena for the illegal download of movies? Learn the Three Options Each Defendant Has When Receiving an ISP Subpoena – Plus Learn Extensive Background Information on These Lawsuits

Defendants’ Three Options for Movie Based Copyright Infringement Claims:

  • Resolve the case anonymously
  • File a motion to quash before it gets to court
  • Prepare to fight your case in court

We hope the information presented is useful to you to help you begin to decide which of the above three options is the best fit for you. If you would like a free confidential consultation contact us and we will show you the value we provide from our extensive experience. Our BitTorrent copyright infringement defense practice is nationwide from coast to coast, with affordable prices and excellent service and reputation. You may reach us nationwide at 312-201-8310 for a free, confidential consultation.

Scroll down to see what movie companies are currently suing people. Share the list with your teenagers or older children and talk with them about streaming or downloading movies “for free”.

You may also click here for a recent 2018 client review of Antonelli Law’s copyright infringement defense services.

Option One: Resolving Your Copyright Infringement Case Anonymously

The easiest and most common way to resolve your case is out of court. Choosing this option allows you to settle anonymously before your Internet provider releases your name and address to the movie company’s lawyers. At Antonelli Law, we charge a flat legal fee of somewhere between $1,500 – $2,000 for anonymous settlements.

Option Two: Filing a Motion to Quash the Subpoena You Received

The motion to quash argues that the lawsuit’s complaints claiming copyright infringement only claim a few ‘bits’ of data were transmitted by the IP address and user in question, therefore they do not provide enough evidence to make a claim on copyright infringement, and the court should throw out the copyright infringement lawsuit brought by the movie company due to the deficiency, then the court should also quash the subpoena for the user in question. At Antonelli Law, we offer a flat rate for filing motions to quash a subpoena.

This option is not without risks. Contact Antonelli’s experienced ISP subpoena defense lawyers to discuss this option further.

Option Three: Preparing to Fight Your  Case in Court

There are many defense standpoints from which we can tenaciously work to fight the copyright infringement lawsuits brought against Internet users. One of the most common forms of defense is claiming that the user who transmitted the data for the movies through a BitTorrent swarm is not the user at this IP address.

This is a strong defense because the copyright infringement lawsuit brought against the defendant assumes that the defendant used their own IP address to transmit the data for the movie. However, hackers often disguise their IP addresses when illegally transmitting data online, so in many cases, the defendant is not at fault and did not commit copyright infringement using a BitTorrent program.

When choosing to fight a copyright infringement lawsuit brought against you, Antonelli Law should be your first choice for defense.

We have local counsel coast to coast, to help us efficiently settle or fight lawsuits brought against our clients. We offer free consultations where we explain what you can expect when fighting this copyright infringement lawsuit in court.

If you received a letter from Comcast or another Internet Service Provider (ISP) with a Subpoena, don’t the ignore it. Get ahead of the problem, talk with a lawyer.

When you get a letter from Comcast informing you of copyright infringement allegations you need to pay attention. The Comcast letter will tell you:

1) A subpoena was been received to reveal your identity in relation to a copyright infringement lawsuit.

2) You can file a motion to quash or vacate the subpoena. If not, after a certain amount of time such as two weeks or 30 days, the ISP will then turn over your name to the Plaintiff who filed the lawsuit.

3) Sometimes, the ISP will advise you to speak with a BitTorrent defense lawyer listed with the EFF Subpoena Defense such as  Antonelli Law.


Set up a free consultation with the defense attorneys of Antonelli Law to discuss the specifics of your case, or keep reading below for more information on what you can expect from your case of copyright infringement.


WHAT IS THIS ABOUT?

The Comcast letter and subpoena probably relates to a federal copyright infringement lawsuit alleging someone in the home illegally downloaded a movie using file-sharing software like BitTorrent and/or a streaming app like Popcorn Time.

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

If the Court does not “quash” the subpoena then Comcast (or your other ISP) will release your name to the company who filed the copyright infringement lawsuit. When the movie company’s attorney finds out your name, you will either be sent a letter demanding money to make the lawsuit go away, or you will be sued. Perhaps both.

WHAT CAN I DO?

First, Don’t panic. As long as you do not ignore this (especially if you are served with a summons) as long as you pay attention to this and speak with an experienced lawyer you will be most likely be fine. It may cost you some money to resolve this, but it is highly likely it will not ruin your life.

Second, talk to a lawyer who is experienced in these kinds of lawsuits. A BitTorrent defense lawyer is experienced with computer networking, computer forensics, and litigation. But perhaps more importantly, a BitTorrent defense lawyer knows better than most how the BitTorrent copyright litigation “game” is played – who the movie company’s attorneys are, the plaintiff’s “experts,” the weaknesses of plaintiffs’ legal and technological claims, and other factors learned by hard work and many clients in different jurisdictions.

Copyright infringement lawsuits can be tricky and involve statutory damages and attorney fee awards to the movie company if you lose. Don’t use someone like your real estate or divorce lawyer. We accept attorney referrals, and Antonelli Law has the experience to competently help you.

Contact us for a free consultation now or scroll down below for a lot more information about your Comcast letter,  subpoena, and BitTorrent copyright litigation defense.

Antonelli Law has helped nearly 2,000 clients targeted in  more than 50 movie companies’ internet movie download lawsuits across the country. From Hawaii to New York and states between.

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Call us nationwide at 312-201-8310 for a free, confidential consultation. We will help you decide what to do.

What Movie Companies Are Suing People Now?

Share this list with your teenage or older children and talk with them about streaming or downloading movies “for free”. Links to each for more information are included below.

ISP Subpoena & Copyright Infringement  Defense, BitTorrent lawsuits, Retain Antonelli Law Nationwide

Antonelli Law is one of the leading law firms in the country defending BitTorrent copyright infringement lawsuits. Antonelli Law has represented nearly 2,000 clients since 2011 dealing with copyright trolls and satellite piracy trolls in nearly every federal court these cases have appeared. We can represent you in your federal copyright infringement defense no matter which state you live, and no more expensively than a local attorney in nearly all cases.

What is a “Copyright Troll” Lawsuit and How Did I Get Involved?

Movie companies that believe their copyrighted movies are being downloaded or “shared” on the Internet without their being paid a license fee will hire companies who monitor BitTorrent traffic to learn the IP addresses associated with the downloads called BitTorrent “swarms”. But only having an IP address is pretty meaningless. How can they sue an IP address?Read the following for details of the lawsuit steps or skip down to the section titled “The ISP Letter – Your Notice of the Lawsuit.”

The Filing of the Copyright Infringement  Lawsuit – “John Doe” Defendants

The companies first hire law firms to file copyright infringement lawsuits in federal courts around the country. In the lawsuit’s Complaint and motions filed with the Court they allege:

1) They own the registered copyright to a protected “work” in copyright legalese (meaning usually the movie), and

2) They have the IP address(es) involved in the download/swarm, but need the court’s assistance to uncover the internet account subscriber who is associated with the IP address(es) involved in the downloading/swarm.

Note: Since the company does not yet know the identity of the person they believe is responsible for the copyright infringement activity, the lawsuit title (called “caption”) is Plaintiff against one or more unnamed Defendants usually called “Does” as in John Doe, Jane Doe, or Does 1-15.

So, the lawsuits are often filed with captions such as:

Malibu Media LLC v Doe
LHF Productions v. Does 1-15
Criminal Productions v. Does 1-15
Cell Film Holdings v. Does 1-15
Fathers & Daughters Nevada v Does 1-15

Others will file against unnamed defendants in the following ways:

Popcorn Time Users 1-10

Does 1-10 in Swarm Hash File Number
SHA1:6891D2D926CF288A517471D34419A95354D3DC8F

Motion for Expedited Discovery

In the next step, the company asserting the copyright, called the Plaintiff, files a motion with the court requesting special permission to issue a subpoena to the ISP that their database says services that IP address (this is the non-technical explanation). Under federal rules (Rule 45), a subpoena can normally only be issued much later in the development of a lawsuit.

Because the Plaintiff believes it cannot serve its lawsuit onto the person who pays the internet bill, called the Internet “subscriber”, until they know who that person is, the Plaintiff has to file a special motion to expedite discovery. If the Court grants the motion, the Court will usually do so but will provide a number of rules that must be followed. This will result in a letter to the ISP subscriber often referred to as “the ISP letter”, which is often your first notification that you are becoming the target of a federal copyright lawsuit.

The ISP Letter – Your Notice of the Lawsuit

Once the Court issues its Order allowing expedited discovery permitting the Plaintiff to issue subpoenas to the ISP (Internet Service Provider), once the ISP receives the subpoena it will then send you a letter informing you:

1) A subpoena has been received to reveal your identity in relation to a copyright infringement lawsuit.

2) If you do not file a motion to quash or vacate the subpoena, then after a certain amount of time such as two weeks or 30 days, the ISP will then turn over your name to the Plaintiff who filed the lawsuit.

3) Sometimes, the ISP will advise you to speak with an attorney such as those listed with the EFF Subpoena Defense which Antonelli Law is.

What Do I Do After Receiving the ISP Letter?

As described above, you should consult with a BitTorrent defense lawyer experienced in BitTorrent copyright defense. Copyright infringement lawsuits are serious business because they involve potentially large statutory damage and attorney fee awards. But don’t panic. There are ways to deal effectively with the lawsuit, protect your identity in many cases, and even settle the lawsuit before you are ever served with the lawsuit. You can also discuss with your attorney how to begin planning to defend against the lawsuit.

This is especially important when dealing with a Malibu Media LLC or Strike 3 Holdings lawsuit. Malibu Media LLC lawsuit settlement demands have exceeded $50,000 so litigation to defend against their claims of copyright infringement is justified far more often.

Once you receive the ISP letter, the Court believes you are “on notice” of the lawsuit and therefore you have a duty not to delete or get rid of anything the Court might believe would be relevant to the lawsuit. Examples of things you must NOT do are: erasing or reformatting your computer hard drive, or throwing the computer away.

If you receive a letter from your ISP

If you receive a letter from your ISP call Antonelli Law for a free initial consultation at 312-201-8310
or use our free confidential contact form or email us for an immediate reply to get started.

Why Should I Hire Antonelli Law?

Our high level of service sets us apart. If you need to speak with an attorney about receiving an ISP notice or summons about a BitTorrent copyright lawsuit anywhere in the country, call us for a free initial consultation with an attorney at 312-201-8310 or use our contact form for an immediate reply to get started.

We appreciate the confidence other attorneys have shown referring their clients to our firm for this niche area. We are available to attorneys around the country for co-counsel assistance.

ISPs That Receive Subpoenas to Reveal Subscribers’ Identities

ISPs that receive subpoenas to reveal the identities of Internet subscribers based on their IP address include:

AT&T
CenturyLink
Charter
Comcast
COX
Frontier
Hawaiian Telecom
Optimum
Time Warner
Verizon
Windstream

…. and more.

An Overview of BitTorrent Copyright Infringement

“Copyright trolls” are law firms or individual lawyers who adopted a lucrative scheme to profit from copyright infringement allegations through what many call extortion. Copyright trolls represent holders of copyrights on movies (mostly pornography), software, and electronic books. We have represented many people targeted by these firms and know what you are going through.

To get an overview of this type of litigation and what you might expect to experience, click here for Jeffrey Antonelli’s article Torrent Wars: Copyright trolls, legitimate IP rights, and the need for new rules vetting evidence and to amend the Copyright Act published by the Illinois State Bar Association’s Intellectual Property section, October 2013.

The article “John Doe Copyright Suits’ No.1 Target” quoting Jeffrey Antonelli is also helpful to understand the rise of BitTorrent “John Doe” copyright lawsuits, including by Malibu Media LLC.

Recent Press on Antonelli Law
Click here for an NPR/WBEZ interview with attorney Jeffrey Antonelli.

“Often times people tell us, look, I can’t deal with this. This will put my job at risk. Or my reputation in the community–to have me named in a copyright lawsuit involving pornography could be devastating. So, I want to settle.”

  • Chicago Daily Law Bulletin article, quoting Jeffrey Antonelli

Our Legal Services

We offer a reasonable Flat Fee for motions to quash a subpoena from Comcast or another Internet company, helping you settle and remain anonymous in many cases; and reasonable fees for defending you if you are named as a defendant in a copyright infringement lawsuit. Selected severe financial hardship cases are handled on a reduced or pro bono basis. Attorney Antonelli has more than a decade of solid litigation experience in a broad range of commercial litigation as plaintiff and defendant, and every attorney at Antonelli Law is admitted to federal court.

In addition to being highly experienced in BitTorrent defense litigation and complex litigation in general, the attorneys of Antonelli Law are remarkable human beings with compassion, honesty, and integrity in their very fabric and give exemplary attention to our clients. We hope these qualities are as helpful to you in your case as our legal advice. At the time your BitTorrent matter is resolved, we hope you will confidently feel we did the best possible job for you. Many client return to us for other legal issues in the future, and a number of left positive reviews on Yelp, Avvo, and blogs focused on this area of law.

We have years of solid litigation experience representing consumers and businesses and concentrates in representing people accused of BitTorrent copyright infringement. Our last complex trial involved computer firewalls, sophisticated commercial networks, and a Microsoft certified expert. in short, Antonelli Law provides serious legal advice for your copyright troll defense.

Attorney Jeffrey Antonelli is admitted to the federal trial bar of the Northern District of Illinois, the Central District of Illinois, and all the federal courts of Colorado, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Indiana. We have co-counsel for federal copyright infringement cases in New Jersey, New York, Maryland, Washington D.C., and Virginia. When a case calls from other states than these we proceed with pro hac vice admission as we have numerous times.

Hiring Antonelli Law Is No More Expensive than Hiring a Local Attorney in Your State

Hiring Antonelli Law to represent you in your federal case is not more expensive, or more difficult, compared to hiring a local attorney assuming you could find one experienced in BitTorrent copyright infringement defense. Federal court practice allows us to represent clients in any federal court in the country.

Why isn’t it more expensive? Federal courts require attorneys to file their papers electronically and often conduct hearings by telephone. This makes frequent trips to the courthouse unnecessary.  Clients normally pay only for the normal travel time to the courthouse any local attorney would charge.

Finally, we have affiliated local counsel in a number of states who have earned our trust and can appear in court if necessary on an expedited basis. We will make arrangements to be in court personally when necessary such as non-routine hearings or a trial.

I received a copyright infringement notice from COX Communications

If you received a copyright infringement letter, the same advice applies as for Comcast customers

I received a copyright infringement notice from AT&T

If you received a copyright infringement letter, the same advice applies as for Comcast customers

I received a copyright infringement notice from TimeWarner

If you received a copyright infringement letter, the same advice applies as for Comcast customers

See Also:

STRIKE 3 HOLDINGS and MALIBU MEDIA LLC File 50 New Lawsuits This Week: Learn the THREE OPTIONS Each Defendant Has – ISP Subpoena Defense

 

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