Eminem Sues Apple!!!

dax40

dax40

dax40

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Eight Mile Style LLC and Martin Affiliated LLC, Eminem’s music publisher and copyright manager, has filed a multimillion-dollar lawsuit against Apple, alleging that the company violated copyrights by allowing downloads of Eminem’s songs onto iPods.

The lawsuit also includes the use of Eminem’s song “Lose Yourself” in an iPod commercial. The issue at hand really boils down to who has the rights to authorize music downloads–the music publishers or the record labels. While Eight Mile Style and Martin Affiliated are reaping the monetary rewards of having music distributed and sold through iTunes, they maintain that Apple was never given permission to do so. Eminem has been amongst the most active in the protection of music rights, and reflects a larger attitude of several in the music industry that are fighting the download industry in regards to distribution and rights.

If this lawsuit wasn’t enough for Apple to deal with, the first class action lawsuit against Apple and AT&T has been filed earlier this month, regarding the manufacturing of the iPhone. Robert Tur is also questioning the distribution rights of Apple in conjunction with YouTube videos.
 
Yeah, the poor guy must be running out of cash to bleach his hair.
Should he (they) win the money should keep him in peroxide for a few more years.
 
Sounds absolutely pathetic to me. I hope Apple win. There is no way Apple would just do that without asking permission off the person they beleived owned the rights.
 
One very important thing to note.

Eminen may not have ever given permission for the publisher to sell the digital/download rights for his works.

It's not stupid if his contract with them is for the physical media only and makes no mention of other methods of distribution.

Similar cases have cropped up all over the place with things like TV series that were made before DVD having to renegotiated the rights to the use of music for use on DVD releases, or for a company who had the rights to the home video having to gain additional rights for DVD distribution, and again for the use of the content in downloads and VOD.

Basically, he could have a very strong case against apple and his distributor- it all depends on the exact wording of the contracts he/his record label signed up to (and I do mean exact wording, sometimes a single word or phrase can make the difference between all digital rights, or just CD/DVD).

As for it being stupid for him to argue, and that he should get with the times.
Look at it this way, if his distributor is the one getting paid by Apple, the chances are they are taking a large cut of what Apple is paying. Now if the distributor doesn't have the right to allow Apple to sell the tracks, then Apple and his distributor could well owe him, and his record label some fairly large amounts of money.


[edit]
Apple may well have asked the people they thought held the rights, but that doesn't mean they cannot be sued if it turns out they should have done further checks (such as asking the actual artist or the record label).

Rights for the distribution of copyrighted works can be fun to observe and read about ;), there are legal wrangles that in some cases have tied up companies for decades because of poorly worded (or even verbal) contracts.
 
helmet said:
Yeah, the poor guy must be running out of cash to bleach his hair.
Should he (they) win the money should keep him in peroxide for a few more years.
Click to expand...

If he's right though then he has every right to. I know I would.
 
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