Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, and other record label are seeking $412 million for the copyright infringement made by The Internet Archive's Great 78 Project.
Archive's Great 78 Project
The Great 78 Project is a community platform made by Archive where you can play over 400,000 recordings from 1898 to 1950s. The project was promoted as a way to preserve, research, and discover the 78rpm records.
The project was started by Internet Archive, George Blood LP, and the Archive of Contemporary Music. By using the project, visitors can finally stream classics from Frank Sinatra, Miles Davis, Louise Armstrong, and more.
Complaints with The Internet Archive's Works
The record labels have sued the company due to its willful reproduction of thousands of protected recordings without any authorization. Moreover, the company had distributed and digitally transmitted the illegal copies.
Sony and other record labels filed a copyright infringement lawsuit which entails 2749 classic recordings. The labels have asked the court to have the copyrighted materials removed and let Archive pay around $150,000 for each infringed work.
Other companies such as UMG Recordings Inc., Capitol Records LLC, Concord Bicycle Assets LLC, CMGI Recorded Music Assets LLC, and Arista Music have pressed the charges.
