The Supreme Court has ruled that internet service provider Cox Communications is not liable for copyright infringement due to its failure to remove known copyright violators from its network. This decision represents a significant loss for the music industry, which holds the rights to many of America's most recognizable singers and songwriters. A jury initially awarded Sony Music Entertainment and other record companies a $1 billion verdict against Cox for the infringement of over 10,000 copyrighted works. However, a federal appeals court ruled that Cox could be held indirectly liable for contributing to infringement on a massive scale. The court upheld the contributory infringement decision, noting that Cox had only terminated 32 customers for copyright infringement and had terminated hundreds of thousands of subscribers for nonpayment.