Paris - A French record label trade group has filed suit against U.S.-based peer-to-peer software distributors Vuze, Limewire, Morpheus and Shareaza, alleging they facilitate mass copyright infringement, TorrentFreak reported.

The SPPF (Societe civile des Producteurs de Phonogrammes en France) recently benefitted from a French court ruling that said it could sue the foreign companies under French law.

"While we appreciate the intent of the new French law, we believe SPPF's complaint is misguided," Vuze CEO Gilles BianRosa told TorrentFreak.

"Vuze is dedicated to the distribution of legitimate content using new technology. In that sense, our interests are aligned with the interests of all content owners, including SPPF's members, against piracy."

For its part, Vuze has filed a counterclaim against SPPF for defamation -- charges a separate court has allowed to proceed.

Also targeted in the lawsuit was Sourceforge, the open source software distribution hub that hosts downloads of the Shareaza application, along with some 180,000 other projects.

Related Links:
http://snipurl.com/5tk46 (TorrentFreak)

http://www.vuze.com