By: Adam Roberts
Popular music streaming service Spotify has agreed to pay $43.45 million to settle a class action lawsuit brought by a collection of songwriters and music copyright holders. The class plaintiffs allege that Spotify unlawfully distributed their music to consumers without paying what are known as ‘mechanical royalties.’ Mechanical royalties are the payments made to a songwriter which gives one the legal right to reproduce a piece of music. Under Section 115 of the Copyright Act, services like Spotify must pay mechanical royalties for all songs streamed on their web service. Although the class action has reached a proposed resolution, there may still be legal issues in seeking court approval of the settlement. Continue reading
Washington Journal of Law, Technology & Arts 