3 Count: Spotify Again…

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1: Spotify Hit with Second Songwriter Lawsuit in Two Weeks

First off today, Ryan Faughnder at The Los Angeles Times reports that music streaming service Spotify has been sued for a second time in two weeks over unpaid royalties. This time the lawsuit was filed by artist Melissa Ferrick, who also accuses the service of playing her music without a license or paying royalties.

The lawsuit follows on the heels of David Lowery’s lawsuit, which claims Spotify has an inadequate system for determining which songwriters deserve royalties for streams and, instead, has simply set aside funds rather than take adequate steps to fix the issue. Ferrick’s complaint is similar, but also adds that Spotify is required to notify copyright holders before they distribute reproductions of their compositions, something the lawsuit claims Spotify has failed to do.

Ferrick’s is for $200 million while Lowery’s is for $150 million. Both lawsuits are seeking class action status.

2: Artists Say Celebrity Pastor’s Church Stole Miami Murals for Ads

Next up today, Andrew Chung at Reuters reports that a group of street artists have filed a lawsuit against Trinity Church, a large Pentecostal ministry with multiple satellites, alleging that the church violated their copyright in an advertisement they made for their Vous Church branch in Miami.

According to the lawsuit, the youth-oriented Vous Church used murals that the artists painted in advertisements for the church that were placed on social media. The murals were painted as a service to the Jose de Diego Middle School in Lynwood, where the church has recently set up services. The lawsuit claims that the church rents out the school’s auditorium for its services in the area but that the arrangement did not include the use of the murals in advertisements.

One of the artists in the lawsuit is David Anasagasti, commonly known as “Ahol Sniffs Glue.” Anasogasti sued American Eagle Outfitters in 2014 over use of his art in their ads, that case was resolved with a confidential settlement.

3: Rare Movie Piracy Case Sees Men Face Eight Years in Jail

Finally today, Andy at Torrentfreak writes that, in Hungary, operators of the popular warez site and BitTorrent tracker SWZ (SpeedWarezZ) face up to eight years in prison and $1.2 million in damages for their role in operating the site.

According to prosecutors, the site operated between 2011 and 2014 and was responsible for sharing at least 1,900 movies and other content without permission. In 2014, the site was raided by authorities in the country, which shuttered it.

However, now the four men allegedly behind the site are facing an aggressive prosecution that could see them in prison for put eight years. The government accuses the four men of profiting directly form the infringements through a combination of advertising and direct payments via PayPal and SMS.

Suggestions

That’s it for the three count today. We will be back tomorrow with three more copyright links. If you have a link that you want to suggest a link for the column or have any proposals to make it better. Feel free to leave a comment or send me an email. I hope to hear from you.

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