The Supreme Commercial Court has dismissed VKontakte’s request to transfer for review to the court’s presidium the imposition of damages in the amount of 210,000 rubles ($6,640) against the company for hosting songs on its website without the consent of the copyright holders, the court reported on its website on Monday.
VKontakte has insisted that the St. Petersburg and Leningrad Regional Commercial Court’s February ruling, which upheld the rulings of higher courts, should be reviewed.
According to the applicant, the court decision on its guilt failed to correspond with the case’s actual circumstances. The applicant also believes that the court violated the principle of uniformity when applying and interpreting a number of articles of the Civil Code.
In November 2011, the Supreme Commercial Court’s presidium established its position with respect to the liability of providers, file hosting services and social networks for hosting content unlawfully posted by users. Internet resources will not incur liability if they do not initiate the transfer of the content, do not choose the receiver, do not control its quality, and take preventative action to preclude violations.
Gala Records, Russia’s first private recording company, was awarded damages in the case. Its website states that it was established in 1988.
VKontakte is an enormously popular Russian social network. It is one of the country’s most visited sites.