Calling it a blow against copyright trolls, the attorneys for Spanish Broadcasting System (SBS) are celebrating a recent court decision.

The U.S. Court for the Southern District of New York has granted SBS $845,040.95 (SBS had asked for $1 million) for the fees it spent on those attorneys to win a copyright infringement suit, saying the original suit was unreasonable and frivolous and filed in bad faith. It awarded both district court and appellate court fees. The court said the plaintiffs appeared to "roll the dice on costly litigation without evidence."

The court had ruled in SBS' favor in May 2017--the case had been going on for years prior to that--but the decision was appealed, so SBS had to spend more money to defend that appeal, which it did successfully. James Sammataro, co-head of Pryor Cashman’s Media+Entertainment practice, represented Spanish Broadcasting System.

It then asked the court to make the plaintiffs pay their attorney fees.

The court has done so, in the hopes that it will help "deter Plaintiffs from bringing meritless infringement cases in the future." It did balk at covering the $1,000 per hour fee of one attorney, however, capping it at $750 per hour.

Companies and their trade associations are increasingly weighing in on the protests blanketing the country in response to the death of George Floyd in police custody.

"We stand in support of the African American community--our employees, on-air talent, colleagues, artists, writers, storytellers, producers and, most importantly, our audience, are all allies in requesting the fair and humane treatment of people of color and the rejection of any and all forms of racism and social injustice," said the Spanish Broadcasting System in a statement Monday (June 1).

Jason Oxman, president of tech association ITI, said his industry is committed to listening to all stakeholders and taking action to "bring about real change."

"The United States and world are bearing witness to the senseless killings, pain, and disenfranchisement the Black community is experiencing this week and has endured for centuries, and together we must find solutions to the endemic racism and persistent discrimination at the root of these latest tragic incidents," he said in a statement. "Our industry makes technology that inspires and empowers people to do better, to have a voice, and to enact change. And our strength lies in our ability to innovate in ways that benefit everyone and draw from the communities we live in. We all need to do more and do better to address pervasive inequality and discrimination, and we have the opportunity to do our part."

Companies and their trade associations are increasingly weighing in on the protests blanketing the country in response to the death of George Floyd in police custody.

"We stand in support of the African American community--our employees, on-air talent, colleagues, artists, writers, storytellers, producers and, most importantly, our audience, are all allies in requesting the fair and humane treatment of people of color and the rejection of any and all forms of racism and social injustice," said the Spanish Broadcasting System in a statement Monday (June 1).

Jason Oxman, president of tech association ITI, said his industry is committed to listening to all stakeholders and taking action to "bring about real change."

"The United States and world are bearing witness to the senseless killings, pain, and disenfranchisement the Black community is experiencing this week and has endured for centuries, and together we must find solutions to the endemic racism and persistent discrimination at the root of these latest tragic incidents," he said in a statement. "Our industry makes technology that inspires and empowers people to do better, to have a voice, and to enact change. And our strength lies in our ability to innovate in ways that benefit everyone and draw from the communities we live in. We all need to do more and do better to address pervasive inequality and discrimination, and we have the opportunity to do our part."