Comment by lodovic
7 hours ago
Do companies in the US really have the right to do that? I would think that kind of investigation is reserved for law enforcement only. If the design was made over email, would the piano company be able to subpoena Google for someone's private gmail messages?
> Do companies in the US really have the right to do that?
Does it matter? What's important is if it can happen or not, and how if so. We already know that MPAA is willing to basically do whatever, even contribute themselves to piracy, if it means they can put people in jail for copying stuff eventually. They themselves also gotten in trouble for copyright violations themselves in the past, so doesn't seem like they're hiding away from breaking a little bit of laws to hunt pirates.
Attorneys can subpoena if the court approves, as part of ongoing litigation, AFAIU (IANAL).
Consider previous cases where companies like Reddit have unmasked their users at the behest of court order.