Judge Tells UMG: No, You Cannot Sue Veoh’s Investors For Copyright Infringement

Things are not going well for Universal Music Group's in its lawsuit against video-sharing site Veoh . First, the Los Angeles judge, A. Howard Matz, ruled last month that the safe harbor provisions of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act do apply to the case, contrary to UMG's request for summary judgment. On Monday, Veoh scored another point in the preliminary legal sparring that always precedes the main event. The same judge threw out the part of the complaint that named Veoh's investors as defendants in the suit. UMG had tried to argue that Shelter Capital, Spark Capital, and Michael Eisner's Tornante Company were guilty of "vicarious copyright infringement" and "inducement of copyright infringement" (yes, those are actual crimes) because they effectively control the company and sit on its board.