Los Angeles – Musician Don Henley said on Thursday that he
has settled claims for damages against a California politician who used his
songs without permission in campaign ads posted on YouTube and elsewhere.
While
a federal court previously ruled the ads to be infringing Henley’s and others’
copyrights, claims for damages have now been settled for an undisclosed amount,
along with an apology from Chuck DeVore and campaign worker Justin Hart.
"We apologize for using the
musical works of Don Henley, Mike Campbell and Danny Kortchmar without respect
for their rights under copyright law," reads the statement from DeVore and
Hart.
"The court’s ruling in this case confirms that political candidates,
regardless of affiliation, should seek appropriate license authority before
they use copyrighted works. Further, we regret all inaccurate, derogatory or
disparaging remarks made about Mr. Henley during the course of this
dispute."
"This is a moral victory, and a victory for every copyright
holder in the United States," Henley told the Copyrights & Campaigns
blog.
"I’m not a fan of YouTube at all for their part in aiding and
abetting copyright violations," Henley added.
"The Internet is slowly
but surely killing the whole concept of copyright… The Internet is a wonderful
thing but it also has a very dark side."
Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/2c2fged
http://tinyurl.com/23j8orn
(Copyright and Campaigns blog)
http://tinyurl.com/29klt8h (DMW previous coverage)
