Supreme Court vacates US$1 billion copyright verdict against Cox

The Supreme Court has vacated a US$1 billion contributory copyright infringement verdict against Cox in its dispute with Sony Music Entertainment. According to JD Supra’s report, the court held that infringement notices and repeat-customer activity may demonstrate knowledge of infringing use, but do not demonstrate that a provider intended its service to be used for infringement. That distinction applies even where the provider does not terminate all infringing accounts.

The dispute arose from unauthorised sharing of copyrighted music through Cox’s internet service. Sony Music Entertainment and other copyright owners retained MarkMonitor to detect suspected infringement and identify associated internet protocol addresses. Over roughly two years, MarkMonitor sent Cox 163,148 notices. Sony argued that Cox knew certain subscriber accounts were associated with repeated infringement but continued to supply internet access. Cox maintained an escalating response system that included warnings and service suspensions.

The report describes the decision as narrowing the route to contributory-liability claims against providers of general-purpose services, rather than treating knowledge of customer misconduct as sufficient evidence of intent. It recommends that businesses review infringement-response policies, product features and communications, document legitimate uses and preserve records of how complaints are addressed. For online platforms, the distinction puts attention on the evidence surrounding their own conduct. The article was published on 18 September 2026, but the supplied extract does not state the judgment date.