Ryudo
11-18-2006, 08:17 AM
From http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aKkqRuMU_Bek&refer=home
Nov. 17 (Bloomberg) -- Vivendi SA's Universal Music Group sued MySpace.com for copyright infringement, saying the social- networking site doesn't prevent users from posting and sharing Universal's videos and songs without permission.
MySpace, owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp., is profiting from content created by Universal's artists, according to a copy of the complaint obtained from the company. The suit was filed today in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles.
Music and videos posted by millions of MySpace users on the site are the ``user-stolen intellectual property of others and MySpace is a willing partner in that theft,'' Universal said in the complaint. Universal is the world's largest record company.
The suit follows complaints filed last month by Universal against Grouper.com and Bolt.com, Web sites that provide user- generated content. In September Universal Chief Executive Officer Doug Morris warned legal action might be taken against sites such as MySpace and YouTube Inc. for copyright infringement. Universal last month made a deal with YouTube to let its users have access to content for a share of advertising revenue.
The lawsuit is ``unnecessary and meritless,'' MySpace said in an e-mailed statement today, adding that it will prevail in court.
`Promotion Platform'
``MySpace provides an extraordinary promotion platform for artists, from major labels to independent acts, while respecting their copyrights,'' the company said in an e-mailed statement. ``We have been keeping UMG closely apprised of our industry- leading efforts to protect creators' rights.''
MySpace said earlier today it is testing new technology that will help copyright holders identify and remove videos containing unauthorized material. Last month it said it licensed technology from Gracenote that will automatically remove illegal music from its site. MySpace has more than 130 million personal pages that include music, videos and photos.
Universal said in its lawsuit that pirated songs from a Jay- Z album that hasn't yet been released have appeared on MySpace. The music company also charged that users of MySpace Music set up ``phony artist profiles that hijack the names of famous artists.'' It cited the profile of a user named ``youtwo'' whose page includes the music of Universal's band U2.
Universal is seeking damages of $150,000 per violation and an injunction against MySpace.
Class A shares of New York-based News Corp. fell 15 cents to $21.27 at 4:24 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. They have gained 37 percent this year. Vivendi, based in Paris, gained 13 cents to 30.01 euros in Paris.
Earlier today Vivendi reported third-quarter results and said Universal's earnings before interest, taxes and amortization increased 11 percent to 138 million euros as sales fell 2.1 percent to 1.1 billion euros. Music companies have been hurt by illegal copying and distribution of music as CD sales decline.
The case is UMG Recordings Inc. v. MySpace Inc., 06-07361, U.S. District Court, Central District of California (Los Angeles).
See, what I don't get is, most of the vids put up are TV captures. So how is putting a music video on your MySpace (which I have done) different from making a VCR recording of said video, and letting your friend borrow it?
There's no profit to be had or made either way. It just makes me go duhhhhhhhhhh.
Nov. 17 (Bloomberg) -- Vivendi SA's Universal Music Group sued MySpace.com for copyright infringement, saying the social- networking site doesn't prevent users from posting and sharing Universal's videos and songs without permission.
MySpace, owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp., is profiting from content created by Universal's artists, according to a copy of the complaint obtained from the company. The suit was filed today in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles.
Music and videos posted by millions of MySpace users on the site are the ``user-stolen intellectual property of others and MySpace is a willing partner in that theft,'' Universal said in the complaint. Universal is the world's largest record company.
The suit follows complaints filed last month by Universal against Grouper.com and Bolt.com, Web sites that provide user- generated content. In September Universal Chief Executive Officer Doug Morris warned legal action might be taken against sites such as MySpace and YouTube Inc. for copyright infringement. Universal last month made a deal with YouTube to let its users have access to content for a share of advertising revenue.
The lawsuit is ``unnecessary and meritless,'' MySpace said in an e-mailed statement today, adding that it will prevail in court.
`Promotion Platform'
``MySpace provides an extraordinary promotion platform for artists, from major labels to independent acts, while respecting their copyrights,'' the company said in an e-mailed statement. ``We have been keeping UMG closely apprised of our industry- leading efforts to protect creators' rights.''
MySpace said earlier today it is testing new technology that will help copyright holders identify and remove videos containing unauthorized material. Last month it said it licensed technology from Gracenote that will automatically remove illegal music from its site. MySpace has more than 130 million personal pages that include music, videos and photos.
Universal said in its lawsuit that pirated songs from a Jay- Z album that hasn't yet been released have appeared on MySpace. The music company also charged that users of MySpace Music set up ``phony artist profiles that hijack the names of famous artists.'' It cited the profile of a user named ``youtwo'' whose page includes the music of Universal's band U2.
Universal is seeking damages of $150,000 per violation and an injunction against MySpace.
Class A shares of New York-based News Corp. fell 15 cents to $21.27 at 4:24 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. They have gained 37 percent this year. Vivendi, based in Paris, gained 13 cents to 30.01 euros in Paris.
Earlier today Vivendi reported third-quarter results and said Universal's earnings before interest, taxes and amortization increased 11 percent to 138 million euros as sales fell 2.1 percent to 1.1 billion euros. Music companies have been hurt by illegal copying and distribution of music as CD sales decline.
The case is UMG Recordings Inc. v. MySpace Inc., 06-07361, U.S. District Court, Central District of California (Los Angeles).
See, what I don't get is, most of the vids put up are TV captures. So how is putting a music video on your MySpace (which I have done) different from making a VCR recording of said video, and letting your friend borrow it?
There's no profit to be had or made either way. It just makes me go duhhhhhhhhhh.