Sixties power-pop band The Turtles have launched a $100 million lawsuit against SiriusXM, accusing the satellite radio provider of violating the rights of thousands of musicians by playing music from prior to 1972 without paying for it.
A little legal context might help. All music began falling under federal copyright protection in 1972, but the laws regarding anything recorded prior to that year are somewhat up-in-the-air. Sirius plays music from before that time by citing section 114 of the Copyright Act, which provides a statute of limitation on the exclusive rights musicians have to music. The Copyright Royalty Board arranges royalty rates and collects through another chapter called Sound Exchange. Until 2011, SiriusXM would send a log of all music played and a sum of money owed in royalties, which the Royalty Board would distribute accordingly. Sound Exchange then asked the company to document everything it was paying for, and it opted not to list any music from prior to 1972. After all, they weren't paying for it.
The Turtles however feel that federal law doesn't apply to music from before 1972 (what law does apply if not federal law, we're not sure). The band, best known for its 1967 hit "Happy Together," is suing the company for more than $100 million on behalf of all artists affected, keeping only a few million in damages for themselves. How it plans to distribute the rest of the theoretical winnings is anyone's guess. Along with the damages, the band is also seeking an injunction that would prevent the company from playing any music from before 1972. Everything. Rock, pop, jazz, musicals, Frank Sinatra, gone.
It's not the first time the band has sued. They took De La Soul to court over the hip-hop trio's sampling of "You Showed Me" and demanded $1.7 million. The two sides settled out of court.
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