Washington - The Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA), a DC-based trade association representing the software and content industry, said that it has reached a $300,000 agreement to settle copyright infringement claims against Silicon Valley-based market research firm Knowledge Networks.

The SIIA said that the firm's marketing group had been distributing "press packets" internally to certain employees on a regular basis.

The packets sometimes included -- without authorization or license -- copyrighted articles owned by SIIA members such as the Associated Press, Reed Elsevier and United Press International.

"[We] hope that it alerts other users of copyrighted content such as newspaper articles, magazine articles, newsletters, newswire services and financial reports to the importance of securing proper licenses, even for internal copying and distribution," said Scott Bain, litigation counsel for the SIIA.

The organization also recently reached a $205,000 settlement with eBay regarding alleged software piracy.

Related Links:
http://www.siia.net/press

http://www.knowledgenetworks.com