Due to allegations that the social media behemoth circulated the rapper’s songs without the required authorization, Eminem filed a lawsuit against Meta.
The Mark Zuckerberg firm is being sued in a federal court in Michigan by Eight Mile Style, the company that owns Eminem’s most well-known tracks, for allegedly storing, copying, and distributing the Detroit rapper’s music without the required authorization.
According to the Los Angeles Times, the complaint is requesting a court order to stop multiple forms of alleged copyright infringement in addition to at least $109 million.
The case claims that Meta, the company behind Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, produced and kept music copies on its servers for their “billions of users.”
According to the lawsuit, 243 tracks owned by Eight Mile Style are available for consumers to access in the company’s music library.
“The recordings of the Eight Mile Compositions have been reproduced and synchronized with visual content on Meta’s platforms across millions of videos, which have been viewed billions of times, on information and belief, despite their not being licensed,” the complaint stated.
According to the lawsuit, its primary grievance was that the music was copied, stored in its own music collection, and encouraged to be used without a license.
In their 2020 license deal with Audiam, a digital music royalty collection provider, the company allegedly deliberately duplicated and disseminated the song following a failed licensing discussion with Eight Mile Style.
According to the complaint, “Meta has profited financially from offering the Eight Mile Compositions to its users as part of their online services.”
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Additionally, it states that since “advertising accounted for 97.8 percent of Meta’s total revenue as of 2023,” management at the company “actively encouraged rampant infringement” in an effort to increase advertising earnings.
The lawsuit additionally stated that karaoke and instrumental versions of the rapper’s songs, along with certain original versions, are still available on the platform, even though the firm started taking down parts of Eminem’s music after learning about the absence of licensing.
According to the complaint, “Meta’s persistent and years-long violation of the Eight Mile Compositions is another instance of a trillion [with a T] dollar corporation abusing the artistic endeavors of musicians for the heinous financial gain of its executives and shareholders without a license and without consideration for the rights of the intellectual property owners.”
However, Meta told the LA Times in a statement that it has “extensive” global music licensing agreements on its social media platforms and licenses with thousands of partners worldwide.
According to the statement, “Meta had been negotiating with Eight Mile Style in good faith, but Eight Mile Style decided to sue rather than continue those discussions.”
According to the LA Times, Facebook was sued by the firm in 2013 for allegedly using the rapper’s song “Under the Influence” for an advertisement without permission.
The complaint claims that Eight Mile Style is requesting $150,000 for each song, per platform.
A jury trial has been requested by the corporation.
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