Copyright Archives

Music piracy declines by 32% in Europe

30/11/2019

Music piracy declines by 32% in Europe with users still accessing pirated content nearly ten times a month according to a recent report by the European Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO). The report shows that there was a 15% EU-wide decrease in access of pirated online content from 2017-2018 but that pirated content was accessed 9.7 times per user per month in the first nine months of 2018, on both fixed and mobile devices. Although consumption […]

RIAJ calls on Apple to crack down on unauthorised music apps

17/07/2019

The Recording Industry Association of Japan – RIAJ calls on Apple to crack down on unauthorised music apps as part of a request by four music industry associations and four music streaming providers for Apple to act more decisively. It suggests that this should be done through stricter pre-screening and faster takedowns and is aimed at ‘Unauthorized Music Apps’ which stream music in ways that flout copyright and other legitimate rights. The organisations that have […]

Stream-ripping piracy continues to grow

05/06/2019

Stream ripping piracy continues to grow with the number of consumers acquiring unlicensed music in the US this way growing from 15 million in 2017 to 17 million in 2018. The figures come from a blog posting announcing the publishing of MusicWatch’s Annual Music Study. The use of legacy forms of piracy such as unlicensed download sites and Peer to Peer (P2P) file sharing applications have largely become a thing of the past but the […]

Spotify settles $1.6 Bn copyright claim

31/12/2018

Spotify settles $1.6 Bn copyright claim brought by Wixen Music Publishing who represent over 2000 songwriters and publishers including Neil Young, Tom Petty and the Black Keys. Wixen Music Publishing had been seeking $1.6 Bn in damages for copyright infringement of more than 10,000 songs but settled out of court for an undisclosed sum which is likely to be significantly less than this as Spotify has not been required to disclose the amount to the […]

Reselling ‘used’ digital music declared illegal

25/12/2018

The US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has found the reselling of ‘used’ digital music illegal. In a ruling handed down on 12th December 2018 it rejected an appeal by Redigi who had created a platform for the resale of legally purchased music files and reaffirmed the original judgement in favour of Capitol Records LLC who had won a $3.5 million settlement in a New York City federal court in 2013. The ruling […]

EU Commission publishes first ‘Counterfeit and Piracy Watch List’

22/12/2018

EU Commission publishes first ‘Counterfeit and Piracy Watch List’ which highlights the continuing threat of music copyright infringement including stream ripping sites. The Counterfeit and Piracy Watch List lists websites and marketplaces outside the EU that are responsible for counterfeiting, piracy or other forms of intellectual property abuse of European products. It is intended both to raise awareness with law enforcement authorities and policymakers of these sites’ unlicensed nature, as well as to encourage intermediaries […]

Google publish online piracy report

02/12/2018

Google publish online piracy report, How Google Fights Piracy, which explains the programmes, policies, and technology Google have put in place to combat piracy online and ensure continued opportunities for creators around the world. In a blog posting to announce the report, Cedric Manara, Head of Copyright at Google, said that: ‘We invest significantly in the technology, tools and resources that prevent copyright infringement on our platforms. We also work with others across the industry […]