Spotify wins case over ‘billions’ of Eminem streams

Judge Aleta A. Trauger published her opinion on 15 August, writing that Spotify should not be liable for any damages.

She highlighted that, although Kobalt was authorised to collect royalties for Eminem’s music, it was not authorised to licence the songs in the US and Canada.

Instead, those rights had been transferred in 2009 to company called Bridgeport Music, which is affiliated to Eight Mile itself.

However, the company “never formally notified any third party that it was taking over” the licensing of Eminem’s music, Judge Trauger wrote.

This situation was “inexplicable”, said the judge, unless it was a “strategic” attempt to extract money from Spotify by claiming copyright infringement.

Noting that the company had never sent Spotify “a single cease-and-desist letter”, she said that Eight Mile was not the “hapless victim” it claimed to be.

“Eight Mile Style, had every opportunity to set things right and simply chose not to do so for no apparent reason, other than that being the victim of infringement pays better than being an ordinary licensor,” she wrote.

The judge also noted that Spotify’s agreement with Kobalt did not include a database of the songs it could, and could not, stream.

“Kobalt’s primary stated reason for that approach is that the catalogue of a large administrator like Kobalt would be routinely changing, rendering any list almost immediately out of date,” she wrote.

That practice “makes it surprisingly plausible that Spotify might be genuinely confused, at times, regarding which rights it possessed and which it did not”.

However, one element of Spotify’s contract with Kobalt was clear: It protected the company against copyright claims on any works “administered” by Kobalt.

That means the company will have to pay any legal fees accrued over the last five years, which could be a large sum.