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SouthPeak stung in second High Court judgement

Publisher found guilty of inducing copyright infringement in CDV case

A long-running legal battle between publisher SouthPeak and German distributor CDV has ended with a second ruling against the publisher, this time finding it liable for inducing copyright infringement.

As reported by Gamer/Law, in November last year UK High Court judge Mrs Justice Gloster ruled in favour of CDV following its claim that SouthPeak subsidiary Gamecock had failed to supply it with four games early enough for a Christmas 2008 release - a judgement which is thought to have cost SouthPeak in the region of $3.1 million.

She reserved her judgement regarding CDV's claim against SouthPeak for inducing copyright infringement, inducing breach of contract and legal costs.

However, in a second ruling made on Friday, the judge decided that SouthPeak was liable for inducing copyright infringement and for CDV's legal costs. She ruled the publisher was not liable for inducing breach of contract.

Mrs Justice Gloster said that she was: "Satisfied, on the basis of the evidence before [her] at trial, that CDV has established on the balance of probabilities that SouthPeak US has both participated in, and authorised, the infringing activities in relation to the making, distribution, and sale."

"SouthPeak US must, jointly and severally with the other Defendants, pay the Claimant's costs of the claim and of the counterclaim, including any reserved costs," the ruling added.

Last week, SouthPeak reported a loss of $2.6 million for its second financial quarter ending December 31, 2009 - a loss that was, in part, attributed to November's High Court decision.