NMPA Files Suit Against Youtube Network Fullscreen, Inc.

The National Music Publishers’ Association (NMPA) has filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against Fullscreen, Inc. (Fullscreen), a multi-channel network (MCN) behind some of YouTube‘s most popular channels, for its illegal use of unlicensed musical works. Fullscreen produces, markets, promotes and exploits videos (including music videos) on YouTube.

NMPA and Maker Studios (Maker), another large MCN, have agreed to a settlement regarding similar copyright issues. Once finalized, NMPA’s settlement with Maker will enable music publishers and their songwriting partners to be compensated for past infringement and license Maker going forward.

“The problem of copyright infringement and unlicensed use of music is endemic to the MCN industry,” said David Israelite, NMPA president and CEO. “Fullscreen’s success and growth as a digital business is attributable in large part to the prevalence and popularity of its unlicensed music videos. We must stop the trend of ignoring the law, profiting from someone else’s work, then asking forgiveness when caught. It is not only unfair, it is unacceptable.”

Comprised largely of cover song videos, MCN channels represent a significant number of the total views on YouTube. Fullscreen alone has 15,000 YouTube channels with more than 200 million subscribers and averages 36 million viewers responsible for 284 million video views per month in the U.S.