Scour has closed down its file-sharing services after legal action forced it into retreat . Here's their official word.

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Scour, Inc., the world's leading Internet search destination for digital entertainment, has voluntarily shut down the Scour Exchange community to facilitate a resolution of pending litigation and a sales of its assets in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court.

The announcement came after the U.S. Bankruptcy Court granted the company's motion to disable the file-sharing application.

"We believe our unilateral decision to take down the Exchange will facilitate a resolution of the copyright infringement litigation pending against Scour. In addition, we expect the shutdown of the Exchange to facilitate a sale of Scour's assets, which will maximize creditor recovery," said Dan Rodrigues, president of Scour.

Listen.com, a San Francisco-based company that integrates and distributes online music products and services across a network of sites, offered Nov. 1 to purchase Scour for $5 million and 527,918 shares of Listen.com stock. The Listen.com proposal was supported by Scour's board and management.

CenterSpan Communications Corp., a Hillsboro, Oregon-based developer and marketer of Internet software applications for communication and collaborative information sharing, announced its intent to submit a bid for Scour's assets.

According to a procedure and calendar established by the court, interested parties must deposit $500,000 with Scour's legal counsel no later than Dec. 5 to qualify as a bidder. The successful bidder will be determined at the final sales proceeding scheduled for Dec.12. Further information concerning the sale procedure and deadlines is available from the company's bankruptcy counsel, Paul M. Brent of Steinberg, Nutter & Brent at (310) 451-9714.

Under Section 363 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code, the sale of a company in Chapter 11 is subject to competitive bidding process. Scour filed its voluntary Chapter 11 petition in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California in Los Angeles on Oct. 12, 2000, which automatically stayed all pending litigation against the Company.

In July, the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and the National Music Publishers Association (NMPA) sued Scour over allegations of copyright infringement.

Scour, founded in 1997, develops and markets Scour.com, the Internet's leading entertainment search site; Scour Exchange, an online multimedia file sharing community; and Scour Caster, an online radio community.

 

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