13th January 2010

An 18-year-old Swiss woman from the Canton of Tessin was found guilty of online copyright infringement by a Swiss court last week after uploading more than 4,000 illegal music and film files.
She was ordered to pay a statutory fine of 900 Swiss francs (US$885), with an additional penalty of 400 Swiss Francs (US$394) levied by the court. If the additional penalty of 400 Swiss Francs is not paid then the woman faces a 14 day prison sentence. She also has to pay court costs of 250 Swiss francs (US$246).
 
The court heard the woman had distributed 4,253 copyright infringing music and film files on the eMule and Bearshare peer-to-peer networks to millions of potential users causing estimated losses to rights holders of 13,500 Swiss francs (US$13,273).

IFPI Switzerland, which brought the case against the uploader, had offered to settle the case out of court.

Peter Vosseler, attorney for IFPI Switzerland, says: “Music and film fans should access the products they love through legal services that reinvest in creating new works. Legal sites are run by reputable vendors who fully disclose their identity, such as Ex Libris, iTunes or Musicload.”