[Archive 2010-10-27] Filesharing software distributor LimeWire ordered to close by court

Historical archive — originally published 2010-10-27. This report records what was known on that date. It is not current news; subsequent events may have changed the situation. Wikinews closed in May 2026.

One of the world's largest distributors of Filesharing software, LimeWire, has been placed under permanent injunction by the US District Court in the Southern District of New York, to cease distributing and supporting its software. The injunction, requested by multiple parties including Bertelsmann Music Group, Motown, Capitol Records, and Sony Entertainment, was filed and approved 26th October and was issued under Title 17 U.S.C §502, covering infringement of copyright.

The injunction states that LimeWire "intentionally encouraged direct infringement" and "...failed to implement any meaningful technological barriers or design choices aimed at diminishing infringement." Since the order was approved, LimeWire has closed its website, posting a notice on the front page explaining the situation, with a link to a copy of the injunction.

As ordered, the software is no longer downloadable from its website. LimeWire is now only responding to inquiries from the press and paid customers of LimeWire Pro. LimeWire could not be reached for comment.

Source and licence

Text adapted from Filesharing software distributor LimeWire ordered to close by court by Wikinews contributors under CC BY 2.5. Paragraphs have been selected and abridged, and formatting adjusted. Contributor history.