March 11, 2010 – Global | Legal and Management | Rock and Pop
By Mike Collett-White, Reuters
Pink Floyd won its court battle with EMI on Thursday (March 11) with a ruling that prevents the record company from selling single downloads on the Internet from the group’s concept albums.
The outcome of a dispute over the level of royalties the band received remained unclear, however, as that part of the judgment was held in secret, the Press Association reported. A source close to the band said those talks were “ongoing”.
Lawyers said it was the first time a royalties dispute between artists and their record companies had been held in private, after EMI successfully applied for a news blackout for reasons of “commercial confidentiality”.
The ruling is the latest blow to EMI, which is seeking new funds to avoid breaching debt covenants.
Owner Terra Firma is also embroiled in a legal dispute with Citigroup over advice and financing the U.S. bank provided to enable it to buy EMI in 2007.
And several top acts, including Pink Floyd and Queen, are reportedly in talks with other labels, following the exodus of the Rolling Stones and Radiohead since Terra Firma took over.
Pink Floyd signed with EMI over 40 years ago. The band, whose albums include “The Dark Side of the Moon” and “The Wall,” went to court to challenge EMI’s right to “unbundle” their records and sell individual tracks online.
Judge Andrew Morritt accepted arguments by the group that EMI was bound by a contract forbidding it from selling records other than as complete albums without written consent.
The judge said the purpose of a clause in the contract, drawn up more than a decade ago, was to “preserve the artistic integrity of the albums”.
Pink Floyd alleged that EMI had allowed online downloads from the albums and parts of tracks to be used as ringtones.
The band’s lawyer Robert Howe told the court: “Prohibition applies equally to
the digital product as it would to the physical product, as one would expect from the commercial purpose of the clause.
“There would be a digital free-for-all otherwise.”
Elizabeth Jones, representing EMI, countered that the word record “plainly applies to the physical thing — there is nothing to suggest it applies to online distribution”.
The judge ordered EMI to pay Pink Floyd’s costs in the case, estimated at £60,000 ($90,000), and refused the company permission to appeal.
The BBC posted the following statement from EMI: “Today’s judgment does not require EMI to cease making Pink Floyd’s catalogue available as single track downloads, and EMI continues to sell Pink Floyd’s music digitally and in other formats.
“This litigation has been running for well over a year and most of its points have already been settled.
“This week’s court hearing was around the interpretation of two contractual points, both linked to the digital sale of Pink Floyd’s music. But there are further arguments to be heard on this and the case will go on for some time.”
Pink Floyd’s influential and acclaimed body of work is a coveted commodity. Members Roger Waters, David Gilmour and Nick Mason all appeared on the 2009 Sunday Times Rich List with personal fortunes estimated at £85 million ($128 million), £78 million ($117 million) and £50 million ($75 million) respectively.
March 9 (Bloomberg) — Pink Floyd, the band that recorded the best-selling album ‘The Dark Side of the Moon,’ is suing record label EMI Group Ltd. in London over online royalty payments and the sale of single tracks.
The band is asking for clarification to their more than 10- year-old recording contract with EMI, Pink Floyd’s lawyer, Robert Howe, said at a hearing in a London court today. When their contract was negotiated in 1998 and 1999, “both parties were faced with a whole new world of potential exploitation,” Howe said.
“It was unclear whether record companies would be selling direct to the consumer or through retailers,” Howe said. Apple Inc.’s online music retailer iTunes “wasn’t launched in the U.K. until 2004. These negotiations were taking place six years before that.”
An increasing number of consumers buy music online and shun older sales formats. Digital sales of music accounted for 27 percent of revenue at the biggest record companies last year and global revenue from music via the Internet and mobile phones rose 12 percent to $4.2 billion in 2009, the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry said in January.
Pink Floyd’s contract with EMI says albums are to be sold as a whole with tracks in a specified order and not as singles, Howe said. That should include the band’s music sold online, he said.
“It’s a matter of fact that the defendant has been permitting individual tracks to be downloaded online and that therefore they have been allowing albums not to be sold in their original configuration,” Howe said.
‘Seamless Pieces’
“Pink Floyd is well-known for performing seamless pieces,” he said. “Many of the songs blend into each other.”
EMI, owned by Guy Hands’ Terra Firma Capital Partners Ltd. private equity group, was granted a request to have part of the hearing heard without the media present.
Elizabeth Jones, a lawyer for EMI, said the restrictions in the band’s contract refer to physical albums and not ones sold online.
“In 1999, when it was negotiated, iTunes didn’t even exist,” Jones said. “I can’t say it’s obvious from the agreement what the commercial intent of the parties was. I’m sure the claimants would have liked to protect their records and EMI would have liked to have had full control to exploit.”
EMI spokesman James Devas declined to immediately comment on the case.
Pink Floyd filed the lawsuit in April last year.
The case is Pink Floyd Music Ltd v. EMI Records Ltd., 666/09, High Court of Justice, Chancery Division (London).
On Amazon from £49.99. (and one refurb for £2,499.99).
Review by Mr A.G.Gray:
I can’t recommend this picture of entertainer Paul Ross enough. I, like you, am an ardent fan of his effortless presenting style – the way he reads the autocue like a poet reading Wordsworth; his intimate interview questions that probe deeper than a million Parkinsons ever could; the chilling way he brings horror stories to life, his voice a beautiful yet terrifying portal to a mystifying otherworld.
But these fine qualities are not why I recommend this picture. There’s a much more significant, deeper reason.
You see, my house is haunted. It has been for years. My hallways chill at the drop of a hat. Pipes moan and groan with the anguish of a thousand souls. Sometimes my curtains move. It’s like living in one of the horrifying stories from his Big Black Book.
One day, I decided to escape the bone-chilling terror of my home-life to attend a market fair in a small hamlet two towns over. Among the assorted trinkets and toys, I felt drawn to one stall in particular. The owner, a wizened gentleman of around 90 years, told me he sensed in me feelings he’d not felt for aeons. This led him to show me his most prized asset – an item he swore he’d never sell until the Gods showed him the way.
I think you know what that item was.
When I returned home, I hung this picture above my haunted fireplace. Almost immediately, I felt the cold disappearing. The curtains stopped twitching. The pipes stopped moaning. I felt sure that this picture of Paul Ross expelled the demons from my home – I don’t know why and I don’t know how, but I can only thank Mr. Ross from the bottom of my heart.
I urge you, dear reader, to bathe in the warmth of Paul’s chubby glow. My heart is at peace now – I only wish the same for you.
Six years after the intense fighting began in the Iraqi town of Fallujah between US forces and Sunni insurgents, there is a disturbingly large number of cases of birth defects in the town.
Fallujah is less than 40 miles (65km) from Baghdad, but it can still be dangerous to get to.
As a result, there has been no authoritative medical investigation, certainly by any Western team, into the allegations that the weapons used by the Americans are still causing serious problems.
The Iraqi government line is that there are only one or two extra cases of birth defects per year in Fallujah, compared with the national average.
But in the impressive new Fallujah General Hospital, built with American aid, we found a paediatric specialist, Dr Samira al-Ani, who told us that she saw two or three new cases every day.
Canon has announced that the long awaited, video-related firmware for its EOS 5D Mark II will be available from mid-March. Firmware version 2.0.3 enables full 1080p HD video recording at 24, 25 and 29.97fps to match the PAL and NTSC broadcast standards. It also adds a new histogram display while shooting movies and allows users to manually control sound recording levels. Audio sampling frequency has also been increased to match broadcast material standards.
Press Release:
Canon adds 24 and 25fps HD Movie recording to the EOS 5D Mark II with Firmware 2.0.3
London, 2nd March 2010 – Canon today pre-announces the release of a firmware update for the multiple award-winning EOS 5D Mark II. Originally announced in late 2009, the update adds 24* and 25 frames per second (fps) recording to the camera’s EOS MOVIE video function, and will be available as a free download from the middle of March.
Developed following feedback from photographers and cinematographers, Firmware 2.0.3 further enhances the EOS 5D Mark II’s excellent video performance. The addition of new frame rates expands the camera’s video potential, providing filmmakers with the ability to shoot 1080p Full HD footage at 24fps (actual 23.976fps) – the optimum frame rate for cinematic video. 25fps support at both 1920×1080 and 640×480 resolutions will allow users to film at the frame rate required for the PAL broadcast standard, while the new firmware will also change the 30fps option to the NTSC video standard of 29.97fps.
A new histogram display for shooting movies in manual exposure, shutter-priority (Tv) and aperture-priority (Av) have been added, and exposure modes will also be available in movie mode. Improved audio functionality will allow users to set sound record levels manually using a sound-level meter displayed on the LCD screen. The audio sampling frequency has also been increased from 44.1KHz to 48KHz, providing the optimum audio signal typically required for professional or broadcast material.
With its full frame CMOS sensor and compatibility with Canon’s wide range of premium lenses, the EOS 5D Mark II is already recognised for its outstanding HD video performance. Launched in September 2008, the camera immediately created a wide range of new possibilities for photographers and videographers, and the addition of new frame rates and manual audio levels extends those possibilities even further – allowing movie makers to shoot stunning movies to suit practically any creative purpose.
Extreme sports photographer Richard Walch was one of the first to be given the chance to use the newly updated EOS 5D Mark II to shoot the snowboarding movie “I Love My Friends”. Commenting on the EOS 5D Mark II’s video performance, Richard said: “The addition of the new frame rates opens up a whole new range of possibilities. If you’re a cinematographer, independent film maker or just enthusiastic about making your own movies, get out there and give it a try”.
“I Love My Friends” shot by Richard Walch on the EOS 5D Mark II with the new firmware includes a look behind the scenes video is available to view at http://www.canon-europe.com/eos5dmarkII.
The firmware will be available to download from mid-March from the Canon website http://www.canon.com/eos-d/
Directed by James Frost, OK Go and Syyn Labs. Produced by Shirley Moyers. The official video for the recorded version of “This Too Shall Pass” from the album “Of the Blue Colour of the Sky”. The video was filmed in a two story warehouse, in the Echo Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, CA. The “machine” was designed and built by the band, along with members of Synn Labs (http://syynlabs.com ) over the course of several months.
by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, director of Amelie and The City of the Lost Children.
Bazil (Dany Boon) is accidentally shot in the head and finds his whole life turned upside down. Homeless, he ends up being taken in by a group of eccentrics, and starts to plot with them to take down the source of all his woes: the weapons manufacturers responsible for the bullets that hit him and killed his father years before.
Director/Writer: Jean-Pierre Jeunet
Cast: Dany Boon, Andre Dussollier, Nicolas Marie
Studio: Sony Pictures Classics
What will be the next big thing online? And how will it change our lives? Google CEO Eric Schmidt, Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer and Smule co-founder Ge Wang share their visions. Full interviews posted here on 8 and 15 March 2010.
