3 Count: UneasyBox

What happens when you don't appear in court...

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1: Lil Nas X Denies “Rodeo” Copyright Infringement Claim, Asks for Case to Be Dismissed

First off today, Sam Sodomsky at Pitchfork reports that Lil Nas X and collaborator Cardi B have responded to a copyright infringement lawsuit that claims their 2019 song Rodeo is an infringement of a 2017 work named gwenXdonlee4-142, which was used in the song Broad Day by PuertoReefa and Sakrite Duexe.

In his response, Lil Nas X claims that Rodeo was a completely independent work and was created without any knowledge of the allegedly infringed work. They go on to claim that, while they are not acknowledging any infringement, that all of the samples and elements of the song were correctly licensed.

Attorneys for the plaintiffs claim that the defense offers no new evidence that disputes the claim and that they are going to continue to seek their day in court. Since the lawsuit was filed, Lil Nas X has performed Rodeo at the Grammys and released a new video for the song featuring Nas.

2: £30k Fine for Pub’s Sky Sports Piracy

Next up today, Colin Mann at Advanced Television reports that, in the UK, the Lamb Inn in the town of Stone has been found to have infringed the copyrights of Sky Sports and has been ordered to pay £29,689.63 ($38,500) in damages and costs.

The pub was accused of screening Sky Sports without first obtaining a commercial license to do so. Much like with the U.S., it is often cheaper to get a private license to show such channels though a commercial license is required to display it in a bar, restaurant or other public commercial space.

The judgment is part of a larger campaign that sees Sky’s agents visit more than 700 pubs or other venues each week across the UK. They say they get their tips from the public or other organizations.

3: Dish Network Wins $9.9m in Damages From TV Piracy Website

Finally today, Rory O’Neill at the World Intellectual Property Review reports that Dish Network has won a $9.9 million judgment against the pirate IPTV service Easybox.

Dish Network filed the lawsuit in 2016 and targeted two individuals, Hung Tran and Thi Nga Nguyen, the suspected operators of the service. However, neither individual responded to the lawsuit nor did they appear in court to defend themselves.

As a result, the court issued an award for the maximum damages, $150,000 per work, and an injunction that bars any third-party providers from providing any services to the defendants. Easybox’s domains were also disabled by the court.

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