New York – Major record label Universal Music Group has been hit with a class action lawsuit, filed by artists Rob Zombie, White Zombie, Whitesnake and Dave Mason, who allege they are owed what may amount to millions of dollars in additional digital music royalties, The New York Times reported.
The suit follows a victory on similar grounds several months ago by producers of Eminem’s early recordings, and a similar suit filed last month by the estate of Rick James.
All of the lawsuits argue that record labels violated their contracts by considering a digital song a “sale” rather than a “license” of the recording.
The definition could mean the difference between 10-15%, and a 50% cut for artists.
The new lawsuit against Universal alleges the label “analyzed internally the financial consequences of its misconduct and cast it in terms of the additional profit to be made by UMG by avoiding its contractual obligations.”
Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/3cgyak8 (N.Y. Times)
