Universal Music Group, ABKCO and Concord Music Group are seeking “at least” $500 million in damages after filing a copyright infringement lawsuit against TuneCore and the music distributor's parent company, Believe. Billboard information.
TuneCore allows independent artists to easily distribute their music across major streaming services like Spotify, Apple Music, and Amazon. The company, which in 2015 was acquired by Believe for an undisclosed sum, says It has paid out more than $4 billion in revenue to artists since its launch in 2006.
UMG, ABKCO and Concord have collectively accused TuneCore of enabling “massive” fraud and piracy in the explosive lawsuit, filed Nov. 4 in Manhattan federal court. The coalition's complaint alleges that Believe's platform is “overrun by fraudulent 'artists' and pirate record labels” who distribute illegal derivatives of hit songs to streaming services and social media.
These alleged artists, the plaintiffs' lawyers claim, uploaded “minor variants” of hits by the likes of Kendrick Lamar, Ariana Grande, Justin Bieber, Lady Gaga and many more. They reportedly attempted to avoid detection by attributing the music to intentionally misspelled names such as “Kendrik Laamar,” “Arriana Gramde,” “Jutin Biber,” and “Llady Gaga.”
Operating in over 50 countries, Believe has positioned itself as an independent, artist-friendly alternative to major label distribution. The explosive lawsuit, a major escalation in the ongoing battle against music piracy, accuses the company of failing to adequately police its platform.
“Believe is a company built on industrial-scale copyright infringement,” a UMG spokesperson said in a statement. “Their illegal practices are not limited to deceiving major label artists, but also independent label artists, including independent label artists within the trade bodies of which Believe is a member.”
“It's no surprise that Believe has been outspoken against the principles of streaming reform that so many major and independent labels have been championing. Why? Because such reforms would undermine and expose their system of building scale and presence in the market by distributing music for which they have no rights and illegally collecting royalties to enrich themselves and their accomplices.
A Believe spokesperson vehemently denied UMG's claims and said the company is preparing to fight them in court.
“As companies that work with artists and labels around the world, we take respecting copyright very seriously,” the Believe representative said. Billboard. “We strongly reject these claims and the statements made by Universal Music Group and will fight them. We have developed robust tools and processes to address this challenge across the industry, working collaboratively with partners and peers and will continue to do so. We have been at the forefront of the digital music ecosystem for almost 20 years, supporting the development of independent artists and labels, and have been granted Tier 1 status and included in the Preferred Partner Program at all music stores.”
You can read the full complaint, obtained by MBW, here.
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