Aimee Mann settles copyright infringement lawsuit

Singer-songwriter and Oscar winner Aimee Mann has settled a 2013 lawsuit against the B2B digital music service provider MediaNet. In a multi-million dollar suit Mann claimed that Medianet was infringing 120 of her songs, alleging that the original licensing agreement, signed in 2003, had expired after three years. 

MediaNet was founded in 1999 as a venture backed by EMI, AOL, BMG and RealNetworks. It was eventually sold to a private equity firm in 2005. Today it functions as a white label that serves up more than 22 million songs to over 40 music services including Yahoo Music, Playlist.com, eBay and various online radio services.

Mann's lawsuit claimed that not all the music being provided by MediaNet was properly licensed. MediaNet maintained they had the rights to distribute the songs in question, because a provision in the contract that purportedly granted the company an ongoing statutory license even after the agreement between the service provider and the musician expired. Mann's attorney's fired back, arguing that the provision only applied to works made available during the license term, and not all songs in Mann's repertoire.

Now, almost three years later, Mann and MediaNet have finally reached a settlement agreement. "MediaNet and I have resolved our differences, and I feel confident that they are making every effort to license their content correctly in a way that protects the rights of artists and songwriters," Mann said in a statement. "I've therefore agreed to put my music back on their service."

MediaNet CEO applauded her move, and reiterated the company's dedication to musicians and their work, telling Billboard that they take "the proper tracking and royalty payments to copyright holders very seriously."

Intellectual property law can be tricky to understand and apply. If your company's rights have been infringed, consult with a business attorney as soon as possible.

Categorised in: Intellectual Property Law

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