A federal judge has denied Meta's attempt to dismiss a lawsuit claiming it violated copyright law by torrenting adult films to train its AI models.
What Happened
On June 11, U.S. District Judge Eumi K. Lee filed the order stating that porn holding company Strike 3 Holdings and Counterlife Media (in which Strike 3 has a majority ownership interest) "have plausibly alleged that [Meta] is liable for direct, vicarious, and contributatory copyright infringement based on the torrenting of their films."
Strike 3 Holdings, which owns several popular porn sites like Blacked, first filed the lawsuit in July 2025. The company alleged that between 2018 and 2025, Meta infringed on more than 2,300 copyrighted pornographic movies by downloading them to train its AI models using the popular torrenting program BitTorrent.
Meta is accused of using IP addresses from its corporate offices to download files with similar patterns, including files with the same keywords downloaded on the same day. The companies are seeking damages up to $359 million.
Background and Context
The lawsuit against Meta is not an isolated incident. In January 2025, a separate lawsuit was filed against the company for pirating books for AI training. Although Meta won that case in June 2025, the judge left the door open for similar suits by stating that the plaintiffs may have been successful if they had made different legal arguments.
Strike 3 Holdings and Counterlife Media became aware of Meta's BitTorrent activity through press coverage of the January 2025 lawsuit. This discovery led them to file their own lawsuit, alleging copyright infringement and seeking damages.
Why It Matters to the Industry
The ruling has significant implications for the adult industry, as it highlights the importance of protecting intellectual property rights in the digital age. The use of BitTorrent to download copyrighted materials without permission raises concerns about the potential for widespread copyright infringement and the need for robust measures to prevent it.
For adult-industry platforms and operators, this case serves as a reminder of the importance of implementing effective content moderation and age-gating policies to prevent unauthorized access to copyrighted materials. It also underscores the need for companies to prioritize transparency and accountability in their use of AI models and data centers.
What Comes Next
The lawsuit against Meta is set to proceed, with Strike 3 Holdings and Counterlife Media seeking damages up to $359 million. The ruling has significant implications for the adult industry, as it highlights the importance of protecting intellectual property rights in the digital age.
The case will likely have far-reaching consequences for companies operating in the adult industry, as they grapple with the challenges of implementing effective content moderation and age-gating policies to prevent unauthorized access to copyrighted materials.
Key Facts
- Strike 3 Holdings and Counterlife Media filed a lawsuit against Meta in July 2025, alleging copyright infringement and seeking damages up to $359 million.
- The companies accused Meta of using BitTorrent to download more than 2,300 copyrighted pornographic movies between 2018 and 2025.
- Meta denied the allegations, stating that the IP address evidence presented by the plaintiffs was meaningless without context.
- The judge ruled that the plaintiffs had plausibly alleged copyright infringement based on the torrenting of their films.
- The case has significant implications for the adult industry, highlighting the importance of protecting intellectual property rights in the digital age.
