Hey music lovers! Get ready for some jaw-dropping news in the music world that involves secret libraries, mega amounts of songs, and a legal showdown!
Meet Anna’s Archive, a website that pretty much turned heads when it claimed to have grabbed a staggering 86 million tracks from Spotify—allegedly a jaw-dropping 99.6% of all listens! Sounds like a dream library, right? But hold up, because things just got super intense.
Major players in the music industry, including Universal Music Group, Sony Music, Warner Music Group, and even Spotify itself, filed a lawsuit on January 2 (under wraps at first!) claiming copyright infringement among a list of other serious accusations. It turns out, Anna’s Archive didn’t even respond to the lawsuit by the deadline! Talk about a bold move!
Now, the US District Court in New York is stepping in, as Clerk Tammi Hellwig confirmed that Anna’s Archive is in default—meaning they didn’t show up or reply! This opens the door for the labels to pursue some major cash without needing a super long trial. We’re talking damages that could hit an eye-watering $13 trillion! 😱
This all started when Anna’s Archive announced they had created a "preservation archive" for music, planning to share the tunes via BitTorrent. But the court didn't see it that way, and Judge Jed Rakoff was quick to place an injunction to stop them in their tracks!
The injunction isn't just talk—it’s action! It means Anna’s Archive can’t share or host the stolen tracks, and domain registries have to block access to their site. Talk about shutting it down! 🚫
The whole music scene is watching what happens next. With the labels and Spotify going full speed on this case, one thing’s for sure—this is a legal beat you won’t want to miss. Stay tuned, because this epic showdown is just getting started!