Apple Dragged Into Lawsuit Involving Singer Ariana Grande

[MacRumors]

Canadian songwriter and producer Alex Greggs, who has worked with several renowned artists such as Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, Justin Timberlake, and the late Michael Jackson, is suing Apple in a larger lawsuit filed against singer Ariana Grande, electronic artist David Guetta, publisher Universal Music Group, and others, according to court documents filed electronically this week.

Greggs claims that Grande's single "One Last Time" from 2014 infringes upon the 2011 single "Takes All Night" by Skye Stevens, said to be the subject of a valid pending U.S. copyright registration in Gregg's name. He added that the defendants had access to "Takes All Night" before composing "One Last Time," and that it's "highly likely" the songs were not created independently of one another.

Skye Stephens performed the song on tour and in live performances at festivals and in clubs throughout the United States and Canada in particular, and also appeared on numerous radio shows, in addition to promoting the song through social media. Moreover, the similarity between Takes All Night and One Last Time is so striking that it is highly likely the works were not created independently of one another.

Greggs accuses Apple, as the operator of iTunes, of failing to verify that Grande and the other defendants had reached copyright and synchronization license agreements, and other contractual agreements, with him prior to releasing "One Last Time" as a digital download on iTunes and for streaming on Apple Music. He filed a similar claim against Universal Music Group as distributor of the single.

Songwriter and producer Alex Greggs, left, and singer Ariana Grande​

Greggs has demanded a jury trial with the U.S. District Court for Central California, and is seeking adequate monetary damages and a permanent injunction that would see "One Last Time" removed from iTunes, Apple Music, and other music distribution and streaming services. The complaint was filed in Santa Monica on Tuesday, and it will have to be accepted by a judge before proceeding.

Article Link: Apple Dragged Into Lawsuit Involving Singer Ariana Grande

 

[0815]

Sounds silly that Apple has to check that every song they have in iTunes has the right copyright and licenses and does not infringe on any other songs .... this seems to be almost impossible to do - Not sure how things are done, but I think whoever publishes somewhere signs that they have all the rights they need to do so, in which case the publishing Artist should be sued (not the 'store' where they sell their stuff and that they might have lied to)

 

[tkukoc]

This guy doesn't know how copyright laws and licenses work.. it's not distributors job to check those documents. The held accountability is that of the original artist and those who filled the paperwork. He can go after Apple for continuing to allow the material to be available but they also have a right to protect their interest and stake in that said material.. blah blah blah.. I'll shut up now..

Just cannot stand the music "business" these days... such a joke!

 

[spiderman0616]

Quick--everyone make comments about how this is all Apple's fault!!!

 

[sunapple]

Great, now I've got that song stuck in my head again.

 

[Waxhead138]

Yep. Really sounds like this guy is taking the approach of suing every link in the chain, hoping that one of those links will settle out of court for a nice sum. Universal might be a target, but Apple seems like a stretch.

Oh, yeah, he can probably sue me too. I think I used my ears to hear one of those songs while someone else played it. I should have had my earphones on to block it out. Here's your nickel.

 

[2457282]

In other news, Dunkin Donuts is also suing her for licking donuts.

 

[Starflyer]

 

[rswilli4]

Sounds like a money-grab to me...

 

[CEmajr]

Steve would never have allowed this...

 

[2010mini]

Steve would never have allowed this...

How would he avoid Apple being sued???

 

[Jeremy1026]

This guy doesn't know how copyright laws and licenses work.. it's not distributors job to check those documents. The held accountability is that of the original artist and those who filled the paperwork. He can go after Apple for continuing to allow the material to be available but they also have a right to protect their interest and stake in that said material.. blah blah blah.. I'll shut up now..

Just cannot stand the music "business" these days... such a joke!

He probably knows exactly how copyright law works, and also knows that by naming Apple as a defendant (even if he drops them before it goes to trial) he will have achieved tons of free marketing for his case and himself personally.

 

[T Coma]

Where does Frank Ocean fit into all of this?

 

[Kaibelf]

Well, heck. Since Qualcomm chips are in a bunch of devices and there's a patent dispute with them, I guess Target and Best Buy better get out those checkbooks.

 

[tkukoc]

He probably knows exactly how copyright law works, and also knows that by naming Apple as a defendant (even if he drops them before it goes to trial) he will have achieved tons of free marketing for his case and himself personally.

You summed it up perfectly, that's exactly right there why I said I can't stand the music business these days.. that's all it is.. press vs reality.

 

[shamino]

Hey, while they're at it why don't they sue Best Buy, Amazon and my local grocery store. They're also selling this album and I'll bet they didn't have a team of lawyers double-check the copyright status of the albums they were given to sell either.

 

[CFreymarc]

If you think patent trolls are bad, media IP trolls will sue almost anyone with a hit production. Some claims are unreal.

One may recall a jam session with someone as they crawl through a demo tape stack finding anything that has a beat similar to a hit song.

Another could be a stage play with similar characters, set arrangements or costume. It goes on and on in Hollywood.

 

[autrefois]

and the late Michael Jackson

Why am I always the last to know?

On a more serious note, I side with Apple on this one (and it seems like it's been a while since I can say that...). It's not their job to determine whether such and such song infringes on another song or not. It's the party who infringes that is responsible and liable.

I think whoever publishes somewhere signs that they have all the rights they need to do so, in which case the publishing Artist should be sued (not the 'store' where they sell their stuff and that they might have lied to)

Yes, that's my understanding, too. You can't sue Barnes and Noble just for selling a book that happens to contain plagiarized material.

 

[Zedcars]

All I know is, Skye Stevens' song sounded terrible and the lyrics made me want to chop my ears off! Ariana Grande's was slightly better produced, and better lyrics (not that hard to improve upon them TBH).

I heard very little similarity between the two, apart from the "take you home" bit - which was a bit sinister.

 

[Amazing Iceman]

That guy is going to spend a lot of money. This kind of lawsuits for copyright infringement of music are very complicated, and unless you have a ton of money and resources, you'll get nowhere else except becoming totally broke.

 

[Makosuke]

He probably knows exactly how copyright law works, and also knows that by naming Apple as a defendant (even if he drops them before it goes to trial) he will have achieved tons of free marketing for his case and himself personally.

That's got to be the reason. Sue someone for copying your song, fine (although good luck actually winning that lawsuit). Sue the distributors of the music though? That's completely nuts unless you're just doing it for media attention.

I guess it worked, since I'd never heard of either artist until this story, although I still don't care.

 

[Porco]

I haven't heard either song, but I bet Taylor Swift could get this all sorted out in mere days, whoever is at fault.

 

[robeddie]

He probably knows exactly how copyright law works, and also knows that by naming Apple as a defendant (even if he drops them before it goes to trial) he will have achieved tons of free marketing for his case and himself personally.

Umm, despite what you and some others who live on this site may think, for most people Apple is not the center of the universe and their mention in this lawsuit probably wont make a flying ---- of a difference how the story is reported.

 

[RowellE]

Someone stole my car! I'm totally suing Apple for this!

 

[campyguy]

Great, now I've got that song stuck in my head again.

Not me. I was revisiting the '70s over the weekend, when I went to HS. I've got "Wang Dang Sweet Poontang" stuck in my head now, from a non-apologetic fan of Ted's tunes.

I'd listen to Ted any day over the latest Mariah wannabe. Ugh, Mariah...