Internet Archive Settles $621 Million Copyright Battle With Music Giants

The Internet Archive has included a lengthy copyright dispute with leading music groups such as Universal Music. This ends a much attention to the rights to historical sound carriers.

Silence in the forest

As part of the Great 78 Project, the Internet Archive Hundreds of thousands of historical sound carriers were digitized and made available online. In contrast, the music industry pulled to the field and acted criticism from many sides. As can be seen from a common document, which has now been submitted to a federal court in San Francisco, both sides have reached an out -of -court settlement. The lawsuit is to be officially dropped as soon as the conditions are fully implemented. Those involved are silent about the exact content of the agreement – the details remain confidential. Externally will only experience how the collection will continue with the collection, whether it remains online or has to be switched off.

The Internet Archive, a non -profit organization based in San Francisco, sees itself as a digital library with the aim of enabling “universal access”. Chris Freeland, head of the library services, confirmed the agreement in a short message. He emphasized that all claims had been settled and no further public comments would be made.

The focus of the procedure was whether the streaming of the digitized shellac boards from the first decades of the 20th century violated copyright. The more than 400,000 records include pictures of sizes such as Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday. The labels involved, including Universal, Sony Music Entertainment and Capitol Records, had raised claims for damages of $ 621 million.

Musician vs. music industry

The procedure not only caused a stir in the music industry, but also in cultural policy circles. Numerous musicians stood behind the project of the Internet Archive. In an open letter from December 2023, Tegan and Sara, Kathleen Hanna (Bikini Kill) and the rapper Open Mike Eagle asked the record companies to withdraw the complaint.

The collection is an indispensable contribution to the preservation of cultural heritage, it said. For the Internet archive, the agreement means the end of this specific conflict, but the organization remains under legal pressure. In a separate procedure for the digital loan of e-books, the archive recently lost a calling.