With just about two weeks until Ultra Music Festival opens its gates for its 2016 edition, the three-day EDM extravaganza just got a big win on another area, court. It was being sued by its former co-founder Alex Omes, who mysteriously died last year. Omes was suing the company for $33 million and a judge ruled in favor of UMF.
According to the Miami New Times, the judge ruled that there was never an employment contract between Omes and the festival and as a result, his estate does not have any rights to the event.
He also ruled that the $33 million that the family was hoping to win in the case was far too high a number. At most the family would be entitled to $720,000.
The judge said that the festival was worth closer to $2.4 million, noting "Ultra is like other startups in the 21st Century. They may be very famous, such as Amazon, but it takes a long time to make money because they require significant reinvestment to grow the brand." Omes has a 30 percent interest, which comes to $720,000 in this valuation.
Omes co-founded the festival in 1999 with his business partner Russell Fabisch. The festival has grown into a global phenomenon with editions in Africa, Europe and Asia.
However things turned sour for their relationship around 2010. Omes was accused of using Ultra connections to benefits his other businesses. In an Ultra countersuit, filed against the Omes suit, they claimed he was "engaging in self-dealing and acts of bad faith which were harmful to Ultra Enterprises."
Things came to a head in 2010 over one marquee act, Swedish House Mafia. The Swedes were booked for Ultra and then only a few months later, Omes booked them for Masquerade Motel in midtown Miami. This was considered to be direct competition to UMF.
In August 2010, he was removed as president and in 2012, the shareholders met to amend Ultra's bylaws to prohibit self-dealing and competition with the festival by its shareholders. This was approved by Adam Russakoff, Fabisch and his brother Charles, who represent 70 percent of the stock.
The situation is not completely over as the Omes estate has filed an appeal.
© 2024 MusicTimes.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
