Pink Floyd Music Ltd & Anor v EMI Records Ltd

Pink Floyd Music Ltd & Anor v EMI Records Ltd

The clear language of the royalty clauses required EMI to account for receipts at source, including those of online retailers such as iTunes, and the factual matrix or industry practice could not displace this. Clause 4.13 of the MLA, intended to preserve the artistic integrity of albums, applied to both physical and digital exploitation, prohibiting EMI from selling individual tracks or parts thereof by online distribution without Pink Floyd's consent.

Parties
Claimant: Pink Floyd Music Limited; Claimant: Pink Floyd (1987) Limited; Defendant: EMI Records Limited
Jurisdiction
England and Wales
Judgment Date
11 March 2010
Procedural Posture
Civil (commercial/contract) / Summary Judgment Application
Outcome
Summary judgment granted for the claimants on both declarations sought.
Legal Topics
Interpretation of Royalty Clauses, Digital Music Distribution, Online Exploitation of Copyright, Summary Judgment Standards
Contract Law Intellectual Property Interpretation of Royalty Clauses Digital Music Distribution Online Exploitation of Copyright Summary Judgment Standards

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Parties

Pink Floyd Music Limited

Claimant

Pink Floyd (1987) Limited

Claimant

EMI Records Limited

Defendant

Procedural Posture

Civil (commercial/contract) / Summary Judgment Application

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Proper construction of royalty accounting clauses for online distribution
  2. 2 Whether clause 4.13 of the MLA restricts digital exploitation of individual tracks

Ratio Decidendi

The clear language of the royalty clauses required EMI to account for receipts at source, including those of online retailers such as iTunes, and the factual matrix or industry practice could not displace this. Clause 4.13 of the MLA, intended to preserve the artistic integrity of albums, applied to both physical and digital exploitation, prohibiting EMI from selling individual tracks or parts thereof by online distribution without Pink Floyd's consent.

Court Disposition

Summary judgment granted for the claimants on both declarations sought.

Orders

  • Declaration that EMI must account for receipts at source from online retailers such as iTunes under the relevant royalty clauses.
  • Declaration that clause 4.13 of the MLA applies to online distribution, prohibiting exploitation of individual tracks or parts thereof without Pink Floyd's prior written consent.