Alex Veiga

January 12, 2007 | Law.com

Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. Inc. has reached a tentative agreement to settle a nationwide class action by Toyota and Lexus owners who complained their car engines were damaged by oil sludge. A federal judge in Louisiana is expected to give final approval to the settlement on Feb. 7, said a Lexus spokesman. Under the proposed terms, Toyota will reimburse owners for the cost to repair oil sludge damage as well as other incidental costs for up to eight years from the date their vehicle was sold or leased.

By Alex Veiga

2 minute read

May 01, 2003 | Law.com

The recording industry has tapped into two Internet file-swapping services and is flashing messages to users warning them they're breaking the law. The industry is also collecting the user names of people suspected of illegally offering copyright material with Kazaa and Grokster, but it doesn't intend to pursue legal action, said the Recording Industry Association of America's president.

By Alex Veiga

3 minute read

August 11, 2005 | Law.com

A judge has approved an agreement by Tenet Healthcare Corp. to settle a class action lawsuit accusing its hospitals of overcharging uninsured and underinsured patients, a lawyer said Tuesday. The settlement covers plaintiffs in nine states. Plaintiffs attorney Steve Berman said he projects the number of claims to reach 50,000 by Jan. 11, the deadline for filing a restitution claim. Dallas-based Tenet and its subsidiaries did not acknowledge any wrongdoing.

By Alex Veiga

2 minute read

April 11, 2006 | Law.com

StreamCast Inc., the company behind the Morpheus online file-swapping software, said last week negotiations to settle a five-year copyright battle with the entertainment industry have failed and it will now fight the case in court. StreamCast CEO Michael Weiss would not provide details on what caused the breakdown in negotiations, but said an outside law firm "mucked this whole thing up ... seeking revenge, retaliation and retribution."

By Alex Veiga

3 minute read

September 30, 2005 | Law.com

Bram Cohen, creator of the popular online file-swapping software BitTorrent has lined up $8.75 million in financing in a bid to build his software into a commercial distribution tool for media companies. Web sites that host torrents -- markers that point the way to other users sharing files or software -- have become targets of entertainment industry lawsuits, but Cohen has not been sued because he is not perceived to be profiting from the illicit use of his software.

By Alex Veiga

2 minute read

December 15, 2006 | Law.com

Philips Electronics launched a service Thursday to help Web sites and online file-sharing networks filter out unauthorized copyright video files. The service, dubbed MediaHedge, is the latest anti-piracy tool designed to help sift through the growing volume of online video files and give copyright holders more say over their content. The service can spot a match even if the video file is degraded, altered or amounts to a small slice of the original video, according to Philips Content Identification.

By Alex Veiga

2 minute read

January 12, 2007 | Law.com

Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. Inc. has reached a tentative agreement to settle a nationwide class action by Toyota and Lexus owners who complained their car engines were damaged by oil sludge. A federal judge in Louisiana is expected to give final approval to the settlement on Feb. 7, said a Lexus spokesman. Under the proposed terms, Toyota will reimburse owners for the cost to repair oil sludge damage as well as other incidental costs for up to eight years from the date their vehicle was sold or leased.

By Alex Veiga

2 minute read

December 19, 2007 | Law.com

Universal Music Group and XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. said Dec. 17 they have agreed to settle a copyright infringement lawsuit over a portable music player sold by the broadcaster that enables users to make digital copies of music. The deal calls for XM to pay Universal Music a fee for every device sold with the ability to make digital copies of individual tracks, a person familiar with the agreement said on condition of anonymity, citing the confidential nature of the matter.

By Alex Veiga

2 minute read

October 29, 2004 | Law.com

In the latest round of music copyright infringement lawsuits, the recording industry has targeted 750 computer users across the nation, including 25 students at 13 universities, for distributing copyrighted recordings over peer-to-peer networks such as eDonkey and Grokster. Though recording companies have sued 6,191 music fans since September 2003, studies differ on whether it has arrested file-sharing. Some data shows that traffic on peer-to-peer networks is as strong as ever.

By Alex Veiga

3 minute read

January 04, 2006 | Law.com

Weeks before the original Napster closed down in 2001, Internet users were flocking to alternative song-swapping programs. Now, like Napster founder Shawn Fanning before them, file-sharing barons are facing their own day of reckoning in the wake of a landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision last summer. During the past four months, several Napster heirs have shut down and others are contemplating what they once couldn't abide: doing business by the entertainment industry's rules so they can survive.

By Alex Veiga

5 minute read