AfterDawn: News

Microsoft, Yahoo, Real sued by MCS Music

The copyright administration company MCS Music America has filed suit against Real Networks, Yahoo and Microsoft this week, alleging that the groups engaged in copyright infringement on some of the company's music.

The case is based on the streaming technology used by yahoomusic.com, rhapsody.com and zune.com which allows customers to listen to full music streams "on demand," or to download unlimited amounts for a monthly fee.



The suit alleges, according to TGDaily, that the music downloaded during complimentary free trials, "stay on peoples' hard drives as long as the free trial period runs, or the monthly subscription fee is paid. To do so, the suit continues, the defendants have to obtain not only the rights for the sound recording itself, but the rights for the underlying musical competition."

MCS says it is currently the "exclusive copyright licensing administrator" for the artists and songs listed in the filing.

As part of the suit, the company is asking for $150,000 USD for each act of infringement as well as an injunction on use of the tracks in an infringing manner.

Written by: Andre Yoskowitz @ 3 Jul 2009 23:27

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• 8 comments

• grkblood

  blah blah blah
  Another greedy company asking for ridiculous compensation, what's new?
  Someone tell these seat warmers to get a life.

  4.7.2009 01:27 #1

• ALIS123

  Well atleast the greedy bastards are suing companies now, not civilians.

  4.7.2009 03:49 #2

• SProdigy

  Surprised that Napster is not on this list, as the Napster to Go subscription service is basically the same thing as listed in this suit.
  
  Let's see if I got this straight. You pay Zune for Zune Pass. You download the music to your PC/Device. Said downloads are DRM encrypted, and only work as long as you pay your monthly fee...
  
  So MCS is basically stating that there is no difference the DRM license and the copyright license, and think they hold the rights to BOTH??? WOW!

  6.7.2009 02:07 #3

• Mez

  ALIS123, they would sue you if they thought you had any money.
  
  They will never get a dime from Jamie Thomas. They do not expect to. They will have to right off the legal expensis. I guess they figured the publisity is worth it.
  
  But then they are total morons that have way too much evil in their soles to think right.

  9.7.2009 12:21 #4

• senator29

  To the best of my understanding here, they do not like the idea of consumers getting the FULL song before they pay anything. So I guess soon our mp3 download service trials will be half songs? PATHETIC

  9.7.2009 14:31 #5

• varnull

  hahahaha.. they must have deep pockets is all I can say.. regions of the world have tried to get these shysters for antitrust and failed
  

  
  
  Free open source software = made by end users who want an application to work.
  I would rather you hate me for who I am than love me for what I am not.
  “It is poor civic hygiene to install technologies that could someday facilitate a police state.” - Bruce Schneier

  9.7.2009 15:32 #6

• TheFro

  Yer i'm going with grkblood. It's companys like MCS music that need a put hole put in their face and their yap holes ironed together. There only doing it because there looking to upgrade there mansions.

  13.7.2009 09:31 #7

• devil8975

  lol.. microsoft should purchase each company that sues them and shut em down. They have the money to do it.

  24.7.2009 05:17 #8