U.K. Courts Rule File-Sharing is Illegal, Impose Stiff Fines

London -- A landmark duo of court rulings in the U.K. has for the
first time found music file-swappers guilty of copyright infringement
and ordered defendants to pay damages to the U.K. music
industry. In the first case, the U.K. High Court granted summary
judgment against a man from King's Lynn accused of file-sharing
copyright infringement, ordering him to pay nearly £5,000 to the
British Phonographic Institute (BPI). The man must also pay legal
fees totalling nearly £13,500 and as yet unspecified damages.
Another man from Brighton was also found guilty by summary
judgment and ordered to pay £1,500 immediately to the BPI, with
additional damages likely to follow.
http://www.bpi.co.uk