• Lawsuit Against Google, Sony, Rdio, Beats Electronics and More May End Pre-1972 Music Streaming and Internet Radio

    Music streaming controversy has gotten uglier as a lawsuits have been filed against Google, Sony Entertainment, Rdio, Songza, Apple's Beats Electronics and more on behalf of the music group that owns the catalogues of the Flying Burrito Brothers, Hot Tuna and Purple Sage. The results of the collective legal push could result in thousands of songs written prior to 1972 disappearing from the internet.

  • Pandora Cries 1st Amendment in Copyright Suit with The Turtles

    Pandora is continuing its fight against The Turtles and all music artists recorded before 1972. Mark Volmer and Howard Kalen, aka Flo & Eddie, filed suit against the streaming music service in September after their successful lawsuit against SiriusXM. Members of The Turtles want compensation, but Pandora in a recent motion said the band is infringing on the service's First Amendment rights to play the group's music, "Billboard" reports. The issue is that the United States did not have a master recordings copyright law until 1972, so everything recorded before that year has been played on Pandora and SiriusXM without compensation for the artists. Volmer and Kalen decided to try the case at the state level, which worked after a judge in California ruled that the satellite radio provider had to pay up. That is the same judge hearing the Pandora case — the service is hoping to receive a change of venue. The pair also secured a win in November in a New York courtroom. Pandora is now crying First Amendment.
View More
Festivals
Popular Now
Real Time Analytics