Scientific research piracy site hit with $15 million fine

Alexandra Elbakyan. (credit: Alexandra Elbakyan)

The operator of a searchable piracy site for scientific research papers has been ordered to pay $15 million as fallout from a US copyright infringement lawsuit brought by one of the world's leading scientific publishers, New York-based Elsevier.

The award doesn't mean the six-year-old Sci-Hub site is shuttering, though, despite being ordered to do so. The site has been engaged in a game of domain Whac-a-Mole ever since the case was filed in New York federal court nearly two years ago. And it doesn't mean that the millions of dollars in damages will get paid, either. The developer of the Pirate Bay-like site for academic research-Alexandra Elbakyan of Russia-has repeatedly said she wouldn't pay any award. She didn't participate in the court proceedings, either. US District Judge Robert Sweet issued a default judgement (PDF) against the site this week, but Sci-Hub remains online.

Elsevier markets itself as a leading provider of science, medical, and health "information solutions." The infringing activity is of its subscription database called "ScienceDirect." Elsevier claims ScienceDirect is "home to almost one-quarter of the world's peer-reviewed, full-text scientific, technical, and medical content."

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