Back in November, King Crimson and Relapse Records gave a glimpse behind the curtain of digital music streaming service Grooveshark, claiming that it was next to impossible to get their music, which was put on the service without permission, taken down. Universal Music Group was the first major label to sue Grooveshark, claiming that the company was actively uploading unauthorized music owned by the label group. While we were on break, Sony and Warner Music Group joined the suit. And last Wednesday, according to the New York Times, EMI Music Publishing has joined the fray in a lawsuit against parent company Escape Media Group.
Since joining up with Grooveshark in 2009, EMI claims that Escape has “made not a single royalty payment to EMI, nor provided a single accounting statement.” EMI is asking for $150,000. Grooveshark stated that they intended to resolve what they called a “contract dispute.” Sorry guys, but not paying them anything sounds like a bit more than a dispute. And given that EMI didn’t join with Grooveshark until 2009 because they were busty settling another copyright infringement suit, and it doesn’t really seem like this one’s going to wrap up super easily. So even though your options for listening to free unlimited music might be getting more narrow, it might make sense to go with a more legal option while Grooveshark sorts itself out.
