Porn Industry Lawyer Is New Copyright King with 16,700 Lawsuits Filed
West Virginia lawyer Kenneth Ford is defending porn producers’ copyrighted content by filing more than 16,700 lawsuits in two weeks’ time.
Ford’s industriousness makes him the nation’s copyright litigation champion, Ars Technica’s Law & Disorder reports. His suits, filed against file-swappers “with a taste for Batman and booty” were filed Oct. 29 and Nov. 4, the story says.
Operating under the name the Adult Copyright Company, Ford filed the suits on behalf of the makers of two movies: Batman XXX: A Porn Parody and Teen Anal Nightmare 2. “We offer hardcore protection for hardcore content,” according to the website for the Adult Copyright Company.
Ford appears to have outpaced the U.S. Copyright Group, which so far has sued about 16,000 people on behalf of indie filmmakers, Law & Disorder says. The U.S. Copyright Group, formed by the Virginia-based law firm Dunlap, Grubb, & Weaver, threatens to sue each defendant for $150,000 unless they agree to a $1,500 to $2,500 settlement fee.
Ford’s suits name the IP addresses used by alleged file-swappers and seek each person’s identity. After that, Law & Disorder says, the Adult Copyright Company sends letters telling the defendants they can settle by making an online credit card payment to avoid being named individually in a lawsuit.
CNet.com interviewed Ford last month. He told the publication he suspects the porn industry got the idea of the copyright litigation from the U.S. Copyright Group.
