Arista Records, LLC v. Launch Media, Inc
Arista Records, LLC v. LAUNCH Media, Inc., 578 F.3d 148 (2d Cir. N.Y. 2009), is a legal case brought by Arista Records, LLC, Bad Boy Records, BMG Music, and Zomba Recording LLC (collectively, "BMG") alleging that the webcasting service provided by LAUNCH Media, Inc. ("Launch") willfully infringed BMG's sound recording copyrights. The lawsuit concerns the scope of the statutory term "interactive service" codified in 17 U.S.C. ยง 114, as amended by the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 ("DMCA"). If the webcasting service is an interactive service, Launch would be required to pay individual licensing fees to BMG's sound recording copyright holders; otherwise, Launch only need to pay "a statutory licensing fee set by the Copyright Royalty Board."
| Arista Records, LLC v. Launch Media, Inc. | |
|---|---|
| Court | United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit |
| Full case name | ARISTA RECORDS, LLC, formerly known as Arista Records, Inc., Bad Boy Records, BMG Music, doing business as the RCA Record Label and Zomba Recording LLC, formerly known as Zomba Recording Corporation, Plaintiffs-Appellants,
Capitol Records, Inc., Virgin Records America, Inc., Sony Music Entertainment, Inc., UMG Recordings Inc., Interscope Records and Motown Records Company L.P., Plaintiffs v. LAUNCH MEDIA, INC., Defendant-Appellee. |
| Argued | March 17, 2009 |
| Decided | August 21 2009 |
| Citation(s) | 578 F.3d 148 |
| Holding | |
| Affirmed. In favor of Defendant-Appellee Launch Media, Inc. | |
| Court membership | |
| Judge(s) sitting | Guido Calabresi, Richard C. Wesley, Christopher F. Droney (District Judge) |
The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit affirmed the trial court's judgment and ruled in favor of Launch, finding that the webcasting service provided by Launch does not fall within the scope of the definition of an interactive service as a matter of law.