Parents Not Liable
For Son’s File-Sharing

A German court has turned over an earlier ruling that the parents of a 13-year-old boy were responsible for his illegal file-sharing.

On Nov. 22, the federal court in Karlsruhe said the couple were not liable to pay the euro 5,400 ($6,900) damages and legal costs to record companies that their son was penalized for sharing nearly 1,200 songs online.

In what will be something of a blow to the record companies and others interested in clamping down on file-sharing, the court took the view that the parents had done enough by pointing out to their son that what he was doing is illegal.

It said they weren’t required to monitor the boy’s online habits regularly or install special software to prevent his illegal file-sharing.