Japan music org sues Pandora TV

Jasrac demands cease and desist, $1.19 mil

By MARK SCHILLING

TOKYO -- The Japanese Society for the Rights of Authors, Composers and Publishers is suing Pandora TV in Tokyo District Court for $1.19 million in damages for using its members copyrighted contents without permission.

The org, known as Jasrac, is also asking Pandora to cease and desist from using the contents on its TV Break website.

Jasrac first complained to Pandora TV about pirated contents on TV Break in June 2007. Pandora denied responsbility for the content.

According to a Jasrac survey, as of April 2008, TV Break had offered 20,613 files with contents copyrighted by Jasrac members, attracting a total 3,812,198 views.

TV Break offers a wide range of contents, from news and sports to comedy and toons, though music is the focus of Jasrac's concern.

YouTube once drew similar complaints form Jasrac and other Japanese copyright orgs, but has since introduced digital fingerprinting technology, called Claim Your Content, which IDs suspect clips as well as taking other anti-piracy measures.

Launched in 2005, Pandora TV is modeled on an eponymous Korean site that has become the largest of its type in the country, with 15 million unique users and nearly 2 billion page views monthly.

Read the full article at:
http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117990193.html

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