Shanda Literature Sues Baidu Again
21st Century Business Herald, 11/04/10
Hou Xiaoqiang, CEO of Shanda Interactive's (Nasdaq: SNDA) online literature subsidiary Shanda Literature, said today that the company would join with copyright holders to file a string of lawsuits against Chinese internet company Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU), adding that more than 10 copyright organizations have already stated their support for Shanda. Hou said that more than 95% of Shanda Literature's popular titles are available for free viewing through Baidu's Wenku document-sharing platform, its Post Bar discussion boards, or its search results. Hou stated that Baidu Wenku should be "shut down immediately," that Baidu Post Bar should be better monitored, and that the company should cease ad partnerships with websites engaged in copyright piracy.
Baidu Wenku launched last year as a platform for Baidu users to share documents with friends online. Users of the service can read and download a diverse range of materials uploaded by other users; Baidu itself does not edit or modify the content of user-uploaded documents. In order to encourage more users to upload content, Baidu Wenku installed a points system under which users who upload documents stand to receive points redeemable for virtual prizes on the platform or for additional downloads. Downloading documents requires users to log in: free documents can be directly downloaded after login, while documents for which the uploader has set a price will cost the user virtual points to download. As of October 26, Baidu claimed to have 9 mln documents hosted on Wenku.
Keywords: Baidu Wenku Shanda Hou Xiaoqiang Internet piracy Baidu Baidu Post Bar online literature copyright Shanda Literature SNDA BIDU litigation law
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