Intellectual Property Protection

Intellectual property protection as it relates to the music industry, including copyrights, trademarks, and IP litigation.

Google Infringed On Multiple Sonos Patents, U.S. International Trade Commission Rules

Dylan Smith

January 7, 2022

Photo Credit: Jako Janse van Rensburg Back in August, the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) issued an initial ruling against Google in the tech giant’s patent-infringement dispute with Sonos. Now, the... Read More...

Nipsey Hussle Estate Wins Restraining Order Against Counterfeit Merchandisers

Dylan Smith

January 4, 2022

Photo Credit: Sumartist Back in September, the estate of Nipsey Hussle filed a trademark infringement lawsuit against a number of merchandisers for allegedly selling unauthorized products bearing the late rap... Read More...

Live Nation Faces Coachella Trademark Infringement Lawsuit Over ‘Coachella Day One 22’ Event

Dylan Smith

December 14, 2021

Live Nation is facing a trademark infringement lawsuit from Goldenvoice. Photo Credit: Andrew Ruiz Months after pursuing legal action against DJ Envy and his Carchella happening, Coachella and Goldenvoice are... Read More...

‘ABBA Mania’ Tribute Band Faces Multimillion-Dollar Trademark Infringement Suit Over ‘Parasitic and Bad-Faith Conduct’

Dylan Smith

December 6, 2021

ABBA's members in motion-capture equipment, which was used to create the holograms for ABBA Voyage. Photo Credit: Baillie Walsh Stockholm-headquartered Polar Music International, which owns a number of ABBA t... Read More...

The RIAA (the major labels) and Yout are scheduled to begin settlement talks in May.

Yout Fires Back Against RIAA Motion to Dismiss In Long-Running ‘Rolling Cipher’ Lawsuit

Dylan Smith

December 6, 2021

Back in October of 2020, Yout named the RIAA in an aggressive lawsuit. Now, one dismissal and about 14 months later, the high-stakes courtroom confrontation is raging on, with the Hartford-based stream-ripper... Read More...

A fake Wu-Tang Clan member has been sentenced to seven years in prison.

Feds Uncover Alleged $20 Million Music Royalty Scam — 50,000+ Songs Illegally Claimed

Dylan Smith

December 3, 2021

Two individuals are facing a number of charges for allegedly operating a music royalty scam. Photo Credit: Emiliano Bar Two individuals are facing charges including conspiracy and wire fraud for allegedly usi... Read More...

Universal Music Sues Investment Platform Over Alleged Republic Records Trademark Infringement

Dylan Smith

November 12, 2021

Universal Music Group (UMG) is officially suing five-year-old investment platform OpenDeal (doing business as Republic) over its recent expansion into music, which allegedly infringes upon several trademarks ... Read More...

Cox Communications Alleges Concealment of Evidence, ‘Misstatements at Trial’ Amid Effort to Overturn $1 Billion Copyright Infringement Verdict

Dylan Smith

September 29, 2021

In late 2019, a jury slapped Cox Communications with a staggering $1 billion fine as part of the mega-ISP’s copyright infringement legal battle with the major labels. Now, Cox has accused the plaintiffs of fa... Read More...

Stream-Ripper Yout Refiles Aggressive Lawsuit Against the RIAA After FLVTO and Y2mate U.S. Shutdowns

Dylan Smith

September 20, 2021

Yout has refiled its lawsuit against the RIAA. Photo Credit: Alexander Shatov Last month, a federal court dismissed the aggressive lawsuit that Yout filed against the RIAA. Now, the Hartford, Connecticut-base... Read More...

Federal Court Dismisses Stream-Ripper Yout’s Aggressive Lawsuit Against the RIAA

Dylan Smith

August 10, 2021

A federal court has granted the RIAA's motion to dismiss the lawsuit that stream-ripper Yout filed against it last year. Back in October of 2020, Hartford-based stream-ripping platform Yout named the RIAA in ... Read More...

Apple Officially Beats $308.5 Million Patent-Infringement Verdict

Dylan Smith

August 9, 2021

Photo Credit: Laurenz Heymann In March, Apple was fined a staggering $308.5 million for allegedly infringing upon a Texas-based company’s patent with its FairPlay digital rights management (DRM) technology. N... Read More...

FLVTO.biz withdraws from major-label suit

FLVTO.biz Lawyers Move to Withdraw as the Stream-Ripping Giant Refuses to Comply With Discovery

Dylan Smith

July 30, 2021

Moscow, Russia. Photo Credit: Astemir Almov Earlier this month, YouTube stream-ripping websites FLVTO.biz and 2conv.com – as well as their owner, Russia native Tofig Kurbanov – pushed back against an order to... Read More...

"My Whole Source of Income Just Disappeared" — How Two Musicians Are Dealing With Cancelled Concerts

Sync Licensing Is Evolving — Now There’s a Comprehensive Analysis of the Music Industry’s Most Exciting Segment

How Sync Licensing Helped Musicians Thrive When Live Music Was Paused

Kate Bush Thanks Stranger Things Fans for Giving ‘Running Up That Hill’ a New Lease on Life

Here’s How Apple Has Dominated Sync Licensing for Two Decades Running

The Methodology Behind Great Sync: A Breakdown for Brands, Content Creators and Supervisors

Developing Trends in the Music Sync Space — A Worldwide Conversation With Leading Female Music Supervisors

Now That the Music Modernization Act Has Passed, Who's Gonna Run the Damn Thing?

Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube Music Are Only Getting Bigger — Which Is Great News for Niche Streaming Platforms

Meet the Artist Who Is Literally Saving His Fans’ Lives — Our Latest Podcast

How to Game the Billboard Charts (And Why You Shouldn’t)

Stop Chasing Playlists and Start Building a Music Career — Our Latest Podcast

‘Bone Conduction’ Headphones Don’t Go Over Your Ears — But Still Transmit Sound to Your Inner Cochlea

Investing In Music Catalogs? It Ain’t All Daisies & Butterflies — Our Latest Podcast

Jaxsta’s Official Credit Metadata Means Good Business For PROs, CMOs, Labels, Publishers And Managers

Muso Announces $3.89 Million Raise, Identifies ‘25% Increase In Digital Piracy’ During 2022’s First Half

Arrests Made In ’70s Theft of Don Henley’s Handwritten Lyrics for ‘Hotel California’ Album — Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Curator Among the Culprits

Judge Rejects Universal Music Preliminary Injunction Request In Lawsuit With Investment Platform Republic

Google Is Actively Violating Sonos Patents, Rules US Customs Service

Google Infringed On Multiple Sonos Patents, U.S. International Trade Commission Rules

Nipsey Hussle Estate Wins Restraining Order Against Counterfeit Merchandisers

Live Nation Faces Coachella Trademark Infringement Lawsuit Over ‘Coachella Day One 22’ Event

‘ABBA Mania’ Tribute Band Faces Multimillion-Dollar Trademark Infringement Suit Over ‘Parasitic and Bad-Faith Conduct’

Yout Fires Back Against RIAA Motion to Dismiss In Long-Running ‘Rolling Cipher’ Lawsuit

Feds Uncover Alleged $20 Million Music Royalty Scam — 50,000+ Songs Illegally Claimed

Universal Music Sues Investment Platform Over Alleged Republic Records Trademark Infringement

Cox Communications Alleges Concealment of Evidence, ‘Misstatements at Trial’ Amid Effort to Overturn $1 Billion Copyright Infringement Verdict

Stream-Ripper Yout Refiles Aggressive Lawsuit Against the RIAA After FLVTO and Y2mate U.S. Shutdowns

Federal Court Dismisses Stream-Ripper Yout’s Aggressive Lawsuit Against the RIAA

Apple Officially Beats $308.5 Million Patent-Infringement Verdict

FLVTO.biz Lawyers Move to Withdraw as the Stream-Ripping Giant Refuses to Comply With Discovery