Spotify is being sued for at least $150 million by the frontman for Cracker, who alleges the streaming website deliberately reproduced and distributed the band’s music without permission.
David Lowery, 55, filed the proposed federal class-action lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles.
The Cracker songs “Almond Grove,” “Get on Down the Road,” “King of Bakersfield” and “Tonight I Cross the Border” all were made available to Spotify’s 75 million users, but the rights holders were not notified, the suit alleges.
A Spotify spokesman issued a statement in response to the lawsuit filed Monday.
“We are committed to paying songwriters and publishers every penny,” Jonathan Prince said. “Unfortunately, especially in the United States, the data necessary to confirm the appropriate rights-holders is often missing, wrong, or incomplete. When rights-holders are not immediately clear, we set aside the royalties we owe until we are able to confirm their identities.”
The complaint alleges that Spotify has acknowledged a failure to obtain licenses and created a reserve fund of millions of dollars for royalty payments that have been withheld from artists.
“Spotify’s unlawful reproduction and/or distribution of plaintiff’s and class members’ copyrighted works has substantially harmed and continues to harm” the interests of Lowery and other musicians, the suit alleges.
— Wire reports