The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) announced that the major Hollywood motion picture studios would be filing hundreds of lawsuits against individuals using peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing software to access movies online. In so doing Hollywood follows in the footsteps of the music industry which has filed more than 6 000 lawsuits against file sharers since September 2003.

In connection with the music industry lawsuits the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) has intervened in court to defend the privacy and due process rights of the individuals being sued. It is not yet clear whether the MPAA lawsuits will make similar actions necessary.