Association Of Music Publishers Demands IDR 3.72 Trillion For Alleged Violations Of Copyright

Illustration - Sony Music Publishing (Twitter @MusicWeek)

JAKARTA - Washington DC-based Association of National Music Publishers (NMPA) and its members issued a lawsuit against Twitter following allegations of copyright infringement.

The lawsuit was filed at the Nashville Federal Court yesterday (June 14) and claims that the social media platform has committed a violation involving more than 1,700 different songs.

It also involves up to 150 thousand US dollars (IDR 2.23 trillion) per violation - a total of 255 million US dollars (IDR 3.35 trillion) to pay if Twitter is proven responsible.

Some of the largest music publishing companies listed include Sony Music Publishing, Warner Chappell, Universal Music Publishing, BMG and Kobalt.

Launching NME, Friday, the publishers listed direct copyright infringements, contributions violations, and violations of representatives as their counts.

David Israele, president of NMPA issued a statement regarding the lawsuit, stating: "Twitter stands alone as the largest social media platform completely refusing to license millions of songs on its service."

Twitter knows very well that music leaks, launches, and flows by billions of people every day on its platform. No longer able to hide behind DMCA and refuse to pay songwriters and music publishers," he continued.

Twitter has not yet issued a response to the allegations.