Korbel wants Comcast to ID anonymous critics

Korbel Champagne Cellars will ask a Sonoma County judge next week to make Comcast Corp. identify Internet customers who criticized the wine company in a Web forum.

It’s the latest twist in a case that could test the limits of free speech on the Internet.

Korbel sued the anonymous critics last year for defamation, saying their comments damaged the century-old business.

The postings in a Craigslist forum last year accused Korbel of punishing employees who reported sexual harassment. They also contended the winery was plotting to cut down redwood forests on its Guerneville property. Other posts alleged Korbel bribed law enforcement and court authorities to keep the company out of trouble.

The charges are false, said Korbel spokesman Terry Fahn. They’ve damaged Korbel’s reputation, according to its lawsuit filed in Sonoma County Superior Court.

The suit seeks an injunction and unspecified damages.

Defamation suits based on anonymous Web comments are becoming more common with the explosion of Internet traffic.

Lawsuits threaten to chill anonymous speech online, said Ann Brick, an attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California.

“If people have to worry about having their identities revealed, they are going to be reluctant to join the discussion,” she said. “There is a real potential to stifle free speech on the Internet.”

Korbel worked with Craigslist to remove the comments, but wouldn’t say whether the popular online bulletin board revealed the Internet addresses of the posters.

While Craigslist won’t comment on the case, its Web site says it may disclose its users’ Internet addresses in court cases.

Korbel has determined the unnamed posters are customers of Comcast’s Internet service, according to court papers. On March 4, Korbel will ask Superior Court Judge Gary Nadler to order Comcast to turn over their names.

Comcast would comply with such a court order, but only after notifying its customers that their identities are being sought, said Comcast spokesman Andrew Johnson. Customers can then go to court to fight the release of their names.

“Our policy is to give our customer notice and sufficient time to decide whether to contest the disclosure,” Johnson said.

If the customer decides to fight the proposed court order, Comcast withholds identifying information until the matter is resolved. If the customer doesn’t choose to fight, then Comcast will reveal their identity, he said.

“We will disclose whatever we have that is responsive,” Johnson said.

Korbel’s attorney, Robert O’Brien, couldn’t be reached for comment. Korbel’s lawsuit said the postings are part of a conspiracy to defame the winemaker.

The case shows that Internet users should be careful what they say in anonymous Web forums, said Matt Zimmerman, an attorney for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a San Francisco nonprofit that defends free speech online.

“Even if you think you are speaking anonymously, you are leaving digital footprints that could ‘out’ you,” he said. “You could still be held liable.”

Judges should be cautious about ordering identities revealed in such defamation cases, Brick said. Korbel should be required to show the comments were truly defamatory and that the business was actually damaged, she said.

“There’s a real potential for abuse,” she said. “It’s important for courts to act carefully before stripping away that protective anonymity.”

You can reach Staff Writer Steve Hart at 521-5205 or steve.hart@pressdemocrat.com.