Small Restaurant Targeted by BMI for Copyright Infringement

Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI), the NYC music clearinghouse, along with a host of individual copyright owners, have sued the owners of the Water Street Café (Fall River, MA) for “unauthorized public performance of musical compositions from the BMI repertoire.”  The complaint alleges five claims of willful copyright infringement and seeks statutory damages and an injunction, along with fees and costs.

 

This is probably a situation where one of BMI’s roving patrols wandered into the Water Street Café only to hear music to which BMI owned the rights being played and then noting that the café had not entered into the standard BMI subscription.  BMI typically files between 75 and 125 copyright infringement actions against eating and drinking establishments every year who fail to sign up.  Its counterpart ASCAP files between 250-300.  According to BMI, the standard license fee for restaurants is about $650.  Legal fees / settlement will obviously be more. 

 

These suits, which can target smaller and more remote establishments, are used to discourage restaurants from thinking they can duck the license.  For a good summary of the practice, see this article:  http://www.qsrmagazine.com/articles/exclusives/1209/copyright-1.phtml

 

Broadcast Music, Inc. et. al. v. FRWSC d/b/a Water Street Café, et. al., 10-10080-WGY (D. Mass. Jan. 20, 2010).