BMI Sues Olive’or Twist Bar for Copyright Infringement of Unlicensed Performance of Five Songs

South Bend, IN – Copyright lawyers for Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) of New York filed a copyright infringement suit alleging Olive’Or Twist Bar of Elkhart, Indiana and its owner infringed the copyrights of the copyrights to certain songs to which BMI owns the exclusive broadcast license. Nine other companies, the copyright owners of the songs at issue, have also joined the copyright infringement lawsuit as plaintiffs.

The complaint alleges willful violation of the Copyright Act based on the performance of five songs on September 11, 2010. The copyrighted works have been registered by the US Copyright Office. The five songs at issue are: “Jessie’s Girl;” “Keep Your Hands to Your Self;” “Mustang Sally;” “Nothin’ But A Good Time;” and “Kryptonite.” BMI is the licensor of public performances of these songs, and the other plaintiffs own the copyrights. BMI’s copyright attorneys allege that Olive Or Twist caused the songs to be performed at their without seeking a license. BMI is seeking an injunction, damages and attorneys’ fees.

This case has been assigned to Judge Joseph Van Bokkelen and Magistrate Judge Christopher A. Nuechterlein in the Northern District of Indiana, and assigned case no. 3:11-cv-00112-JVB-CAN.

Practice Tip: In this case, BMI is the exclusive licensor to rights to play the songs listed. Unless a proper license is received, a bar or other establishment plays or allows a band to play music that has been registered with the US Copyright Office may commit copyright infringement. These types of cases are very friendly to the intellectual property owner, and a plaintiff is entitled to attorney’s fees from the defendant. Complaint – Broadcast Music v. Olive’or Twist

Further information about this case is as follows:

Filed: March 15, 2011 as 3:2011cv00112 Updated: March 17, 2011 01:33:38

Plaintiffs: Broadcast Music Inc , Cyandie Publishing , Eleksylum Music Inc , Escatawpa Songs , Fourteenth Hour Music Inc and others

Defendants: Lori A Long, Olive’or Twist Bar Inc and Lori

Presiding Judge: Joseph S Van Bokkelen

Referring Judge: Christopher A Nuechterlein