Discord says piracy subpoena would violate users First Amendment rights

Discord has been fighting to protect user anonymity throughout the hacking lawsuit on its platform, stating that sharing too much information violates users' First Amendment rights. Publisher of games such as Maple Story, Nexon has accused Discord of failing to comply with a Digital Millennium Copyright Act subpoena, issued by a Texas federal court, which ordered the platform to provide user information related to some alleged IP infringement. Nexon said members on the platform "frequently use" the service to "distribute pirated versions of video games," including Nexon video games.

In a lawsuit reported on recently by TorrentFreak, Nexon cited lawyers for Discord as saying the subpoena was overly broad and premature. It told the game's publisher earlier this year that fulfilling the order could violate "Discord users' choice to remain anonymous, an aspect of their free speech protected by the First Amendment." But Nexon argues Discord's refusal to comply deprives it of the information it needs to pursue people it believes are illegally infringing its intellectual property. 

Under the DMCA, companies that believe their copyrights are being infringed can seek a federal subpoena to compel another service provider to provide them with information about a user suspected of infringing their copyright. "While Discord strives to comply with its obligations under the law, acting as a copyright partner is not one of those obligations," attorneys for Discord wrote in a July letter included in the recent Nexon lawsuit. The lawyers described Nexon's requests as "improper and unduly burdensome," adding that already in October 2023, when the company had asked that Discord serve a subpoena, it had provided Nexon with "basic subscriber information for a specific set of 64 user IDs." 

According to Discord, Nexon is asking for similar information from users based on alleged infringement of one of those very copyrights. "You are seeking to re-negotiate a contract that has already been made, and performed," Discord's attorney wrote. Discord's attorneys also threatened Nexon in a letter that its request violated users' First Amendment free speech rights and their decision to remain anonymous. "The request seeks to unfairly unmask anonymous speakers, and thereby compel the disclosure of First Amendment protected material," Discord said in the July letter. Discord and Nexon declined to comment . Discord said in July it was prepared to file a motion to quash the subpoena, but Nexon now claims it waited too long to do so.