Music Labels File Lawsuit Against Internet Archive for Unauthorized Digitization of Old Records
The nonprofit organization, Internet Archive, is being sued by Sony Music Entertainment, Universal Music Group, and several other music labels for copyright infringement related to its conservation project. The lawsuit alleges that the organization unlawfully digitized, uploaded, distributed, and transmitted pre-1972 sound recordings. The focus of the legal action is on the Great 78 Project, which aims to safeguard music recorded on 78rpm discs.
The record companies are calling the Internet Archive’s efforts a “blatant insult” to the music of Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Miles Davis and Louis Armstrong, among others. They also listed a few examples of “iconic recordings” available through the Great 78 Project, such as White Christmas, Sing, Sing, Sing, and The Christmas Song.
The companies said the songs stored on the project’s website are already available for streaming and other music services, so they are “at no risk of being lost, forgotten or destroyed”. But the organization explained on the project portal that the artifacts and proof of use of the often rare 78 rpm discs and recordings still have research value.
The plaintiffs disagree, writing in their complaint that the operation of the Internet Archive “far exceeds” the limited storage and research purposes. “The Internet Archive is unashamedly committed to providing free and unrestricted access to music for everyone, regardless of copyright,” they added. The record companies are seeking statutory damages of up to $150,000 for each protected sound recording, and according to Bloomberg, this could add up to $372 million for listed recordings.
The Internet Archive is also embroiled in a legal battle with a group of US publishers led by Hachette Book Group over the National Emergency Library. The organization lent digitally scanned copies of books through the program at the height of the pandemic, in what publishers described as “deliberate mass copyright infringement.” A federal judge barred the Internet Archive in that case, though the organization plans to appeal the decision.
