RIAA Keeps Settlement Money, Artists May Sue
Written by enigmax on February 28, 2008Despite collecting an estimated several hundred million dollars in P2P related settlements from the likes of Napster, KaZaA and Bolt, prominent artists’ managers are complaining that so far, they haven’t received any compensation from the labels. According to a lawyer, some are considering legal action.
When EMI, Universal Music and Warner music reached settlement agreements with the likes of Napster, KaZaA and Bolt, they collected hundreds of millions of dollars in compensation - money that was supposed to go to artists whose rights had been allegedly infringed upon when the networks were operating with unlicensed music.
Now, according to an article, the managers of some major artists are getting very impatient, as it appears the very people who were supposed to be compensated - the artists - haven’t received anything from the massive settlements. They say the cash - estimated to be as much as $400m - hasn’t filtered through to their clients and understandably they’re getting very impatient.
Lawyer John Branca, who has represented the likes of The Rolling Stones and Korn, said: “Artist managers and lawyers have been wondering for months when their artists will see money from the copyright settlements and how it will be accounted for.”
Indicating the levels of impatience with the big labels holding the money he added: “Some of them are even talking about filing lawsuits if they don’t get paid soon.”
Of course, EMI, Universal and Warner have a different take on the delay, with sources suggesting that it’s down to the difficulties in deciding who gets what money, based on the levels of copyright infringement for each individual group or artist.
A recording industry on the back foot having spent most of its time fighting the digital revolution rather than becoming part of it, is clearly trying to hang on to every penny, even when it comes to compensating the artists who they claim they were defending by taking legal action in the first place.
Irving Azoff, who manages Christina Aguilera, The Eagles, Van Halen, REO Speedwagon and Seal (amongst others) says it’s hard for artists to get what they deserve from the labels: “They will play hide and seek, but eventually will be forced to pay something,” he said. “The record companies have even tried to credit unrecouped accounts. It’s never easy for an artist to get paid their fair share.”
Typically, the labels see it a different way. An EMI spokeperson said that it was “sharing proceeds from the Napster and Kazaa settlements with artists and writers whose work was infringed upon” while Warner’s said the label is “sharing the Napster settlement with its recording artists and songwriters, and at this stage nearly all settlement monies have been disbursed.”
The Universal spokesman spoke only of the label’s ‘policy’ of sharing “its portion of various settlements with its artists, regardless of whether their contracts require it” with no mention of whether it had actually done this or not.
But typically, when money is involved, things start to get murky. The same sources who suggested the reasons for the delay in making payments are also suggesting that there might not be much money to even give to the artists.
It’s being claimed that after legal bills were subtracted from the hundreds of millions in settlements, there wasn’t much left over to hand out.
Previously: Swedish Record Labels See Filesharing as Virtue
Next: Cashing In on Naive BitTorrent Users
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LOL at all the artists and managers who actually thought that they would ever see a penny of those settlements. How naive can they be?
Now Stones/Korn/and the rest of you get back on your sold out knees. You’ve got a lot more industry dick to suck.
capitalism Must die
‘It’s being claimed that after legal bills were subtracted from the hundreds of millions in settlements, there wasn’t much left over to hand out’
Who is claiming this?
For the good of this generations youth…ban MTV, rap and hip hop and music videos. Revert back to live concerts in smaller venues at affordable prices. Bands play, get paid after the show and move on down the road.
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Did anyone really expect the artists to get anything anyways? All these lawsuits are for copyright infringement, right? So the people who end up with the money are the people who own the copyrights - and that is almost NEVER the actual band or artist.
Pick a major-label album (or even most minors and indies) and check the copyright info on the back or inside. Does the copyright name match the band name or any of it’s members? Not damn likely. So why should they get any money from a copyright infringement lawsuit? They don’t own the copyrights! Their label or publishing company does!
Now before you get all out of sorts, I agree that it is a disgusting situation. The artists *should* get a share of that money. The simple fact is that they currently (for the most part) have no legal right to it, since they signed all their rights over to their record label.
RIAA iz dumbz LOLZ!!
Seriously, fuck you RIAA.
**continues doing things he knows piss you off*
who cares about friends
with some baking soda you could get a benz
so we shudnt buy albums then i mean our artist dont get paid after all the shit they go through
So… something I was wondering just now, why arent the sources of the article listed? Practically anybody can write “he said that and this”. Not that I dont believe this, but still…
[quote comment="300209"]We didn’t really believe it was about the artists, now did we?[/quote]
i knew that… and still, you made me sad :(
[quote comment="300220"]What is the difference between the RIAA and the Mafia? Nothing a Marine sniper couldn’t fix[/quote]
sorry, but world doesn’t work that way… one can do shit about it. liberty, equality, and fraternity! anyone? France, where are you? liberté, égalité, et de la fraternité!
http://cheesealliance.zitenet.com
Visit my forums there. If you have a problem with me advertising in the comments via a proxy then go complain in the forums. One post more for me.
If you are considering signing up the layback-rules forum please be active at least. Activity is the best thing we need at the moment because we need it. The forums originally had been popular yet it got shut down, we didn’t save a fucking backup and we’re starting over again.
We lost so many members so we’ll need new ones, this is where you people come in. Just join, make a few posts, bookmark, when you’re bored come back in, post a little, then do this once in a while.. even if that while is months we need posts.
It seems like the RIAA’s “place” is becoming less and less clear. It would be really interesting to see financial records of the RIAA. They very well might very hurting and whatever means of survival necessary will be taken. Remember people, corporations function like organisms - survival by whatever means necessary.
{who does the riaa work for? the artis. they’re just doing their dirty work. i know they’re bastards and all, but i think the same amount of hate should be directed at the source.}
Number 46 you haven’t a clue, nor do all those of you who bitch about the artists. The RIAA are suing to reduce artists royalties, treat them like indentured servants and you think the RIAA is doing the artists work? Dumbass. Why not find out what you’re talking about rather than repeat some ridiculous comment you think justifies your stealing of music.
The RIAA treats artists and music like commodities. It as never been the MUSIC business, it has always been the music BUSINESS, and like any business it is more about the perpetuation of the business itself than the product - think cigarettes. Any businessman would rather sell toothpaste than music. Ok, this week you use colgate,and next week you might change brand but you’ll still be buying toohpaste. The “poor” record company shills can’t figure that people’s tastes change - what sold last week might not sell next week… That’s why the industry is so sh*tty. They have gotten to the stage where only manufactured, marketed bullcrap sells just enough to keep them in their jobs.
People here steal music. Doesn’t matter if its Madonna or “Mad Geoff” from Spokane… the RIAA are a bunch of sh*t sucking scumbags, but that does not enable anyone’s self righteous justification for theft - there’s really no other way to put that…
Go and have a look at http://www.futureofmusic.org/ and educate yourselves. Find out about a record contract. Discover that the record companies rip the artist off more than anyone would ever believe.
You people do not support music, you are just leeching off the artists in EXACTLY THE SAME WAY AS THE RIAA.
Go find some independent bands, buy their stuff, see them live - make them popular so that they do not have to rely on the monopolistic media conglomerates that control the record companies, radio, television, movies and, one day, the Internet. Help reclaim music from the multinationals.
And in the mean time, try and find out some information about the subject on which you wish to comment. Otherwise you are part of the “RIAA problem.”
Hire Me! … I’ll make them an offer they can’t refuse.
Well the RIAA seem pretty fucking pointless if they are suing people infringing copyright just to keep the money for themselves.
I believe this is another win for file sharing, as it is just another dead end for artists who are trying to make a buck. Maybe they will move with technology rather than fight against if only to receive nothing in return.
@70,
no,they’re not pointless,no body is
pointless when there’s lots of $$$
to b made,n this copyright thing is just one fo thier justification to sue….they gave record company a false reason to fear,n offer thier armies(lawyer) for a fee…simple.
N file sharing will never win,cos when
goverment sided with big corps,they get lots of $$$,it just a matter of time b’fore the .gov tilt…
n artists ? oh they’re screwed…in more ways than one..
The fact that the RIAA are in it for the money hardly surprises me. The artists are pretty naive. I mean, wtf did they think would happen when a bunch of lawyers are involved? Ostensibly for the artist’s benefit. Jokey-joke town.
RIAA and the entire music industry are all sell-outs. Buy indy music, indy banned books like “America Deceived” and read indy blogs (like Torrent). Forget the junk MSM feeds you everyday.
Last link (unless Google Books caves to the gov’t and drops the title):
http://www.iuniverse.com/bookstore/book_detail.asp?&isbn=0-595-38523-0
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