Music industry legal news

Sony Music settles big termination rights test case

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Sony Music • 2 min read

Sony Music settles big termination rights test case

Another lawsuit aiming to test whether the US termination right can be applied to record contracts has been settled. A group of musicians including The New York Dolls’ David Johansen agreed to drop his case against Sony Music after it was taken to arbitration…

Chris Cooke • 27 Feb 2024

Diddy producer alleges UMG boss Lucian Grainge “knew or should have known” about spiked drinks in new sexual assault lawsuit

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Diddy • 3 min read

Diddy producer alleges UMG boss Lucian Grainge “knew or should have known” about spiked drinks in new sexual assault lawsuit

In the latest sexual assault lawsuit filed against Diddy, producer Rodney ‘Lil Rod’ Jones Jr claims that he was subject to and witnessed assault and harassment while working on the musician and mogul’s last album. He also says that Universal and its boss Lucian Grainge are complicit…

Chris Cooke • 27 Feb 2024

MU says blocking of Kneecap funding may breach Human Rights Act

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Kneecap • 2 min read

MU says blocking of Kneecap funding may breach Human Rights Act

Earlier this month UK Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch blocked MEGS funding for Belfast hip hop group Kneecap because of the politics of their music. In a new letter to the minister, Musicians’ Union General Secretary Noami Pohl says that intervention may breach the Human Rights Act…

Chris Cooke • 26 Feb 2024

Spotify vs Apple name-calling kicks off again after EU mega-fine rumours

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Apple • 2 min read

Spotify vs Apple name-calling kicks off again after EU mega-fine rumours

Apple issued a statement last week following rumours it is facing a €500 million fine as a result of an EU investigation prompted by a complaint made by Spotify. It claims that Spotify just wants a free ride, but Spotify issued its own statement arguing it is actually seeking a level playing field…

Chris Cooke • 26 Feb 2024

Internet Archive’s crackle based ‘fair use’ defence in copyright case is perverted, say labels

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Internet Archive • 2 min read

Internet Archive’s crackle based ‘fair use’ defence in copyright case is perverted, say labels

The Internet Archive recently filed a motion to dismiss the copyright lawsuit filed against it by the record industry over its Great 78 Project. The record labels have now responded, with a fun debate over whether crackles in a recording makes copying it fair use on historical preservation grounds…

Chris Cooke • 23 Feb 2024

Ticketmaster incentivised TQ Tickets' touting operation, says former employee in fraud trial

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Ticketmaster • 3 min read

Ticketmaster incentivised TQ Tickets' touting operation, says former employee in fraud trial

The fraud trial of former employees at ticket touting company TQ Tickets continues, with one defendant insisting that Ticketmaster knew about the firm’s operations, because they were using resale platforms then owned by the Live Nation ticketing company…

Chris Cooke • 23 Feb 2024

R Kelly victim’s $4 million judgement overturned on procedural grounds

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R Kelly • 2 min read

R Kelly victim’s $4 million judgement overturned on procedural grounds

A court ruling ordering R Kelly to pay $4 million in damages to a woman who accused him of sexual abuse has been overturned in Illinois. Appeal court judges said that procedural rules had not been properly followed when Kelly’s legal team stood down from the case…

Chris Cooke • 22 Feb 2024

Music industry’s billion dollar damages win in Cox case overturned

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Cox Communications • 2 min read

Music industry’s billion dollar damages win in Cox case overturned

In 2019 the music industry won a billion dollars in damages in a copyright lawsuit against internet company Cox Communications - but that ruling has now been overturned on appeal, even though appeal judges confirmed that the ISP is liable for copyright infringement…

Chris Cooke • 21 Feb 2024

Viagogo to pay out £90,000 compensation in Swiss consumer rights settlement

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Viagogo • 2 min read

Viagogo to pay out £90,000 compensation in Swiss consumer rights settlement

After six years of legal work by Swiss consumer rights organisation FRC, Viagogo has committed to make changes to its website in the country and to pay compensation to 807 ticket buyers who formally complained about the secondary ticketing company…

Chris Cooke • 21 Feb 2024

Supertramp in court over song royalties dispute

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Supertramp • 1 min read

Supertramp in court over song royalties dispute

Four former members are in court in a dispute over a 1977 agreement outlining royalty splits between them. Co-founder Roger Hodgson says that the deal that gave Dougie Thomson, John Helliwell and Bob Siebenberg a share of songwriting royalties was never supposed to be permanent…

Chris Cooke • 21 Feb 2024

New study says web-blocking drives people from piracy to legit sites

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Piracy • 2 min read

New study says web-blocking drives people from piracy to legit sites

A new study suggests that the web-blocking of piracy sites does result in more consumers accessing licensed content services, though it also drives more users to unblocked piracy platforms. The music industry is keen for web-blocks to be available in more countries…

Chris Cooke • 20 Feb 2024

Ticket tout defendant insists he wasn't actively involved in his wife's fraudulent scheme

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TQ Tickets • 2 min read

Ticket tout defendant insists he wasn't actively involved in his wife's fraudulent scheme

A director of ticket touting company TQ Tickets accused of fraudulent trading has told a court that he wasn’t actually involved in the business. He claims that he simply allowed his wife to list him as a director because she couldn’t perform that role due to an earlier bankruptcy…

Chris Cooke • 20 Feb 2024

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