A US district court in New York has ordered file-sharing website eSnips to reveal the names of users who posted copies of Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit on their site last year.
eSnips agreed to remove the posts, but Tolkien’s estate is worried people will resubmit them. The estate‘s lawyers say they want to inform the people in question that this activity is unlawful.
Stephen Maier, the estate’s lawyer said “The Tolkien estate was sensitive to the fact that most of the offenders were fans and did not seek commercial gain. We would hope that any further action would not be necessary.”
Tolkien’s estate often takes action against internet infringers. Only last month the estate obtained damages from an IT professional of £2,050 who offered Tolkien’s works for download.
