One Step Beyonce: Sony Sues Swede for Copyright Infringement

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A 47-year-old Swedish music industry worker and Beyonce fan is the target of a $235,000 copyright infringement claim by Sony Music Entertainment, the Techdirt Web site reports.

Sony has filed a claim in Gothenburg District Court seeking 1.5 million krona ($235,000) against the man whom it claims shared Beyonce's album 4 before its commercial release date via BitTorrent, the 12-year-old protocol that shoulders peer-too-peer file sharing of significant data over the Internet. Sony alleges the unauthorized sharing harms its marketing strategy and sales, along with the chanteuse's reputation, according to the Techdirt post.

Techdirt is skeptical about Sony's suit, challenging the measure of purported damages and questioning whether the timing of the suit hypes the album's actual release date. "TUOL"'s music-loving staff wonders how the alleged actions of one 47-year-old devotee in some Swedish burg impugns the reputation of the National Anthem lip-synching Beyonce.