NEW ORLEANS — Several music companies are suing a Louisiana business alleging it infringed on their copyrighted material.
Broadcast Music Inc.; Dynatone Publishing Company; Springtime Music Inc..; EMI Blackwood Music Inc.; Collinpark Music; DA Crippler Publishing; E W C Publishing Co., Who Is Mike Jones Music; 2 Playas Publishing LLC; WarnerTamerlane Publishing Corp.; Hip City Music Inc.; and Hifrost Publishing all filed the lawsuit against 520 Frenchmen Street LLC, Claude Mauberret and Jude Marullo allege that since November 2022, it has made over 70 attempts to contact the defendants through various means, including phone, mail, and email, aiming to educate them on their obligations under the Copyright Act, according to a complaint filed in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana.
The plaintiffs claim these efforts included Cease and Desist Notices, instructing the defendants to immediately stop using BMI-licensed music in their establishment
They claim the defendants have engaged in willful copyright infringement for unauthorized public performances of musical compositions.
For each work listed, the complaint asserts that the respective creator, publisher and the plaintiffs complied with copyright requirements.
The defendants are accused of publicly performing the musical compositions without proper licenses, constituting copyright infringement.
The plaintiffs are seeking compensatory damages and a restraining order on the defendants. They are represented by Mark A. Balkin and Joseph C. Chautin.
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana case number: 2:23-cv-07062