EMI suing Def Jam Rapstar devs for at least $8 million

Music giant says Terminal Reality and 4mm Games failed to obtain rights for 54 songs and sounds that were included in 2010 karaoke game.

 

Def Jam Rapstar may be harboring unlicensed songs. Music giant EMI is suing Def Jam Rapstar developers Terminal Reality and 4mm Games for at least $8 million for failing to obtain the rights to many of its songs, according to New York federal court documents obtained by the Hollywood Reporter.

EMI is proceeding against the developers over 54 songs and sounds it says were infringed upon. The music label is demanding damages of $150,000 per work, for a total of over $8 million. On top of this, EMI is seeking an unspecified share of Def Jam Rapstar's net profits.

EMI is asserting "part ownership" of the supposedly infringed songs and beats. For example, EMI claims 10 percent ownership of DJ Khaled's "I'm So Hood," 16 percent ownership in Mims' "This Is Why I'm Hot," and 30 percent ownership of Lil Wayne's "Got Money."

The fractional values are a result of the songs having multiple contributors and underlying samples, according to the report.

The music label also said some of the sound recordings it owns were infringed upon by Def Jam Rapstar, including Daft Punk's "Harder Better Faster Stronger." The beat in this song was used by Kanye West--who is signed to an EMI label--in his popular song "Power."

EMI reportedly contacted Terminal Reality and 4mm Games concerning the matter, but its requests went unanswered. GameSpot contacted Terminal Reality for comment, but as of press time, the company had not responded. Attempts to contact 4mm were unsuccessful.

Read and Post Comments | Get the full article at GameSpot


"EMI suing Def Jam Rapstar devs for at least $8 million" was posted by Eddie Makuch on Thu, 29 Mar 2012 12:30:12 -0700
Filed under: Video Games

Top

No Comments »

Leave a Reply




Back to Top