MUMBAI (CelebrityAccess) – One day after Warner Music Group (WMG) filed an injunction in Mumbai court against Spotify to prevent the streaming giant from being able to gain rights to the Warner/Chappell Music (WCM) publishing catalog using a statutory license ahead of its long-awaited launch in India, the saga continues.
This morning, a Spotify spokesperson reached out to MBW with news that the High Court in Bombay had reportedly decided to “deny Warner/Chappell’s request for an injunction”.
WMG immediately hit back saying the claim was a flat out “lie,” according to MBW.
So, where does this whole thing stand? Warner is describing the High Court’s decision as more of a temporary tie, with neither side getting exactly what they were hoping for just yet.
As part of the court’s ruling, Spotify must now submit complete records of any use of Warner/Chappell’s music in India to the High Court, in addition to records of all revenues generated by user consumption of this music. The company must also pause its application for a statutory license for Warner/Chappell’s rights for four weeks.
Commenting on the ruling, a Warner spokesperson said in a statement: “Spotify’s comments yesterday about our fair market negotiations were appalling to us, and we’re shocked that they would exploit the valuable rights of songwriters without a license. That said, we remain optimistic that we can reach a strong, balanced commercial agreement.
“We welcome the Court’s decision to direct Spotify to deposit monies with the Court and to maintain complete records of any use of our music as well as all advertising and subscription revenue earned by Spotify. These are positive steps to protect our songwriters’ interests.
“We’re also pleased that Spotify cannot pursue proceedings for their claim to a statutory license before the Intellectual Property Appellate Board for a period of four weeks. Our copyright infringement case will continue on an expedited basis.”
Whether or not Spotify is legally infringing on Warner’s copyrights by going forward with their launch in India during that four-week period will be decided at a later date.
Stay tuned.
