3 Count: Spotify Robots

Have any suggestions for the 3 Count? Let me know via Twitter @plagiarismtoday.

1: Tiger King Lawsuit Dismissed by Florida Judge

First off today, Garrett Phillips at WFLA reports that a Florida judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by Joseph Maldonado, better known as Joe Exotic, alleging copyright infringement of his songs.

The lawsuit was filed against musician Vince Johnson. In 2020, Johnson signed a publishing deal with BMG for various songs used in the documentary series Tiger King. However, Maldonado claimed that he had written the songs and filed the lawsuit seeking control over the publishing and $8 million in damages.

That lawsuit has now been dismissed. According to Johnson, the two sides agreed to a settlement with no money owed to Maldonado. Other details of the settlement have not been disclosed.

2: Pirate IPTV Owner’s Conviction First Ever Under Protecting Lawful Streaming Act

Next up today, Andy Maxwell at Torrentfreak writes that Franklyn Valverde has become the first person to be convicted under the Protecting Lawful Streaming Act (PLSA) and has been sentenced to just over one year in prison.

The PLSA was signed into law in late 2020. It aimed to close a loophole in US copyright law where pirate streaming was not a felony, even though unauthorized reproduction and distribution was. Over three years later, we have our first conviction under the law.

In this case, Valverde was accused of operating the Fenix pirate streaming service, which offered DISH Network content to subscribers. Initially, Valverde pleaded not guilty but, in November, pleaded guilty to one of the counts. In addition to the year in prison, he has been ordered to pay a $250,000 fine and over $22,000 in restitution.

3: Old Capital Square Dance Club Makes Lemonade out Of Lemons After Copyright Infringement

Finally, today, Emily Woodbury at St. Louis Public Radio reports that a local band is trying to raise awareness about copyright infringement of their music on Spotify.

The infringement was discovered when drummer Drew Lance joined the band Old Capital Square Dance Club and started listening to the band’s catalog on Spotify. He then noticed that someone identified as “Marico Charlotte” had uploaded several of the band’s songs to his account, altering the audio so that it wouldn’t be flagged as copyright infringement.

The band has said they plan to file a report with Spotify but first want people to listen to manipulated tracks and understand what is happening. He specifically hopes that Spotify will improve its algorithms to prevent this kind of infringement from happening in the future.

The 3 Count Logo was created by Justin Goff and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License.