RIAA ANTI-FILE-SWAPPING LITIGATOR MOVES ON
He was the lead litigator in the RIAA’s cases against Napster, Aimster, Grokster, AudioGalaxy and Verizon. Oppenheim was part of the team that planned and carried out the strategy of going after individual infringers. In addition to his digital tasks, he also helped the trade org formulate an anti-physical piracy strategy, litigating against Media Group, Cinram, Pioneer and AmericDisc. And way back when, in the heady days of 2000, he was the spokesperson for SDMI, the Secure Digital Music Initiative.
Said RIAA President and Chief Legal Officer Cary Sherman: “Matt has been a tremendous asset to the record industry by helping us to set a strategic vision during difficult times, and then turning around and implementing that vision. He has demonstrated himself as one of the best intellectual property litigators and strategists over and over again. While we are disappointed that Matt is leaving, we are delighted that he will be joining the firm of Jenner & Block where we will continue to rely on him. I’ve kept him on my Buddy List, so I can let him know when I’ve finished burning the new Usher record for him.”
The anti-RIAA/pro-P2P sites were giddy with glee on the announcement, with one such site, on the wishful thinking side of the delusional fence, positing that the RIAA was perhaps thinking about changing its strategy.
Nevertheless, here are a few choice Oppenheimer quotes we’ve collected over the years:
“Verizon's persistent efforts to protect copyright thieves on pirate peer-to-peer networks will not succeed.”
"The court has not ruled on the merits in any way. We're confident that when the court does rule on the merits, the rights of copyright owners will be upheld."
"Napster threw a lot of issues on the wall. Judge Patel was interested in a few of them, but at the end of the day, there is no question that liability is going to be found and damages will be assessed."
“The physical evidence connecting the Technicolor plant to these CDs is crystal clear, so our case is strong. We fear that the CDs we have filed suit on are only the tip of the iceberg.”
"The government's filing supports the proposition that we have long advocated—copyright owners' have a clear and unambiguous entitlement to determine who is infringing their copyrights online, and that entitlement passes Constitutional muster."
Oppenheim will be a member of the Jenner & Block’s Entertainment and New Media Practice, in addition to working closely with its Intellectual Property and Technology Practice.
