Song clips commonly used in social media posts are at the center of a copyright suit brought by several record labels alleging that Paris-based music distributor Believe S.A. and its New York subsidiary “blatantly” infringed on songs recorded by well-known artists such as Ariana Grande, Lady Gaga, Rihanna and others.
The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, claims Believe and TuneCore Inc. knowingly infringed on copyrights by distributing “sped-up” versions of popular songs, many of them attributed to artists using altered versions of the true performers’ names, such as “Arriana Gramde,” “Llady gaga” or “Rihamna.”