Spotify Hit With Copyright Class Action Lawsuit

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On Dec. 28, musician David Lowery filed a class action lawsuit against Spotify for copyright infringement. Spotify is one of the most popular music streaming services today, which allows users to stream music over the internet, typically on computers or cell phones.

The Spotify copyright class action lawsuit claims that Spotify streams “copyrighted musical compositions … to more than 75 million users” that it “has used without mechanical licenses in an egregious, continuous, and ongoing campaign of deliberate copyright infringement.”

Spotify offers both a free service (supported by advertising) and a “premium” service that costs $9.99 per month, according to the class action lawsuit. The “premium” service also includes the ability to listen to music offline.

The class action lawsuit points to announcements on the Spotify website that indicate it currently has 20 million paid subscribers, and that Spotify knows it has not paid royalties to all copyright owners, in part because “Spotify may not be able to identify the copyright owner from the sound recording provided to Spotify.”

A study cited by the Spotify copyright class action lawsuit states that Spotify has failed to pay for musical works it used “approximately 21% of the time.” The class action lawsuit alleges that Spotify has created a reserve fund of unpaid royalties to copyright owners. The complaint states that this is evidence of Spotify’s “egregious and willful” violations of copyright law.

Plaintiff Lowery is a well-known alternative rock musician, and a singer and songwriter with the bands Cracker and Camper Van Beethoven. The copyright class action lawsuit states that Lowery has the copyright to at least four songs that Spotify has provided to its customers without Lowery’s permission. The complaint states that Lowery’s claims are “typical” of the potential Class.

The Spotify copyright class action lawsuit seeks to represent all owners of copyrighted musical works which were distributed by Spotify without the copyright owner’s permission, at any time since Dec. 28, 2012. The complaint states it should be easy to determine Class Members, because Spotify should have records of all songs it has used and all royalties it has paid.

According to the Spotify class action lawsuit, federal copyright law allows for payment of $750 up to $30,000 for each infringed work, and a penalty for willful violations of up to $150,000 each. The lawsuit states that Spotify has been “unjustly enriched” by its copyright violations, and that Spotify should pay all compensation received for the music it used, which the plaintiff “believes is not less than” $150 million.

The Spotify copyright class action lawsuit also asks for an injunction stopping Spotify from the continued copyright infringement. “Unless the Court enjoins and restrains Spotify’s conduct, Plaintiff and the Class Members will continue to endure great and irreparable harm that cannot be fully compensated or measured in monetary value alone,” the Spotify class action lawsuit alleges.

Lowery is represented by Sanford L. Michelman, Mona Z. Hanna, Melanie Natasha Howard, David C. Lee, and Ilse C. Scott of Michelman & Robinson LLP.

The Spotify Copyright Class Action Lawsuit is Lowery v. Spotify USA Inc., Case No. 2:15-cv-09929, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

UPDATE: On Feb. 12, 2016, Spotify asked a California federal judge to dismiss the copyright infringement class action lawsuit.

UPDATE 2: May 2019, the Spotify songwriter copyright class action settlement is now open.Click here to file a claim.