Performing rights organization Global Music Rights has filed a lawsuit against the owner of seven radio stations in Vermont and New Hampshire. Under the maximum penalty allowed per infringement, Vermont Broadcast Associates could end up owing nearly $10 million.
The lawsuit stems back to the long legal battle between the Radio Music License Committee, of which VBA is a member, and GMR. RMLC first sued GMR over licensing in 2016, leading to a counter-suit. This conflict was resolved in 2022, with GMR offering a long-term license to all US radio stations, including VBA. However, GMR claims that VBA did not accept this offer and continued to play GMR-controlled songs without a license.
The rights group alleges that VBA stations played 66 songs represented by GMR over 1,600 times without a proper license over a five year period. Federal copyright law’s maximum penalty for an infringement of this calibre is $150,000 per song.
Global Music Rights’ legal counsel asserts that VBA ignored their communications on multiple occasions, including a cease-and-desist letter.
GMR General Counsel Emio Zizza said, “While we only turn to litigation as a last resort, it is long established US law that GMR’s clients’ copyrighted works cannot be publicly performed without a license. All the radio stations that have entered into a GMR license and are paying their fees deserve the benefit of that license. Station groups who don’t want to pay for a GMR license are not entitled to play GMR’s immensely popular catalog of songs, depriving creators of their due.”
