Artist management: Copyright or pay a fee

It can be a bit refreshing when the things that you have invested in are viewed as part of the relevance of discussion. As an artist manager, there are many things that command your attention when building your business plan. It is helpful to be as proactive as possible in an unpredictable industry. It is also important to research current affairs in order to stay ahead of the game and to learn through the actions of others. While researching entertainment business litigation, there were a few court cases that could be useful guides. Two entertainment lawyers, Tamara Benet, of Texas and Gordon P. Firemark of California share insight on some of these cases and the rulings administered.
The case of RIAA v Joel Tenenbaum, a graduate student at the Boston University is a case of copyright infringement. Joel admitted to downloading thirty songs and sharing them with others. Since Joel admitted guilt to the infringements, the court rewarded the four companies a total of $675,000. After an appeal, Joel argued the punishment was too severe and got his punishment reduced to $67,500. This is the second case of someone being sued for infringement. This is a real life story of someone being sued for not having the correct licensing or permission in writing for digital downloads.
Another case is the case of four of the largest record labels in Canada in agreement to pay song writers and publishers almost $48 million in damages. The companies Sony Music Entertainment Canada Inc., EMI Music Canada, Universal Music Canada Inc. and Warner Music Canada Ltd are paying a settlement of $47.5 million. The labels are paying because they were reproducing original works and title works without proper licensing from owners of the copyright and without distributing royalties.

Henry “Chet” Baker, a legend of jazz, died in 1988, but his estate began the suit in 2008. According to Bloomberg Business week, the company established a fund of $50 million dollars because they knew there would be a day like this. As a business owner, it is usually less expensive to follow guidelines and associated fees than it is to be fined for not having appropriate licensure. As a manager, it is critical to the business plan and financial success of the artist to obtain suitable rights and licenses. Although sometimes the court rules with the record labels and other times rule with the artist, it is important to stay current in the industry and always monitor your intellectual properties and copyrights.