Microsoft Loses Copyright Infringement Suit Against Lithuanian BitTorrent Tracker

According to the blog TorrentFreak, reporting on the latest news on the BitTorrent protocol and file sharing, Microsoft was unable to shut down the largest Lithuanian BitTorrent website LinkoManija after the court of appeals overturned earlier decision in favor of the defendant.

At the beginning of 2010, Microsoft sued LinkoManija’s owner and host for assisting in the unauthorized distribution of Microsoft Office 2003 and 2007 applications. Microsoft obtained an injunction against the website and its alleged operator, Kestas Ermanas, whose assets were seized and bank accounts frozen. However, the website remained online as Ermanas appealed the decision claiming that he had transferred the ownership of LinkoManija to another party back in 2009.

According to TorrentFreak’s May 21, 2010 post, the court of appeals has recently ruled in Ermanas’s favor and LinkoManija will remain online until Microsoft files a new lawsuit against the present owner of the Lithuanian BitTorrent. The date of the final trial has not been set yet, but it is expected soon.

Microsoft lost a similar case in Lithuania in March 2010 against a LinkoMania user who allegedly shared Windows 7 Ultimate without authorization. The court ruled in favor of the defendant due to a lack of evidence against him.

For more information, please contact Masa Lopicic at our Balkan Regional Office.

Source: TorrentFreak