Warner Music UK Ltd & anr –v- Tunein inc.

NOTE:  THIS IS A LIVE STREAM OF A FULLY REMOTE HEARING CARRIED OUT VIA MICROSOFT TEAMS

22 – 24 February 2021

At trial the Defendant reserved the right to challenge the CJEU decision in GS Media and assert that in the event that EU law ceases to apply in the UK the CJEU’s decision should be re-examined.

By Appellants Notice filed on 16 January 2020, within the extended period set by the lower court, the Defendant appeals with permission from Birss J (save in relation to costs) his order dated 5 December 2019 whereby he made an injunction order, ordered an inquiry as to damages resulting from the Defendant’s infringements of the Claimants’ copyrights, made case management directions as to the inquiry and as to an interim licence process and confidentiality.

Birss J’s main judgment dated 1 November 2019 says the case was an example of the tension between copyright and the internet and that this was a test case about infringement of copyright in sound recordings under section 20 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.Section 20 provides for the communication right in UK law. His order followed the trial of the action before Henry Carr J in May 2019 and further hearings before Birss J in September and December 2019. See Birss J’s main judgment and consequentials judgment dated 18 December 2019

In summary the main judgment decided that the Defendant (a US technology company which operates an on-line platform providing a service enabling users to access radio stations around the world) had infringed the Claimants’ copyright in sound recordings of music when that music was played through the Defendant’s system (website and apps) from internet radio stations in categories 2, 3 and 4 but not category 1. The categories are set out in paragraphs 9 (1) (i) to (iv) of the main judgment.

View hearing:

Day 1

Part 1

Part 2

Day 2

Part 1

Part 2

Day 3

Part 1

Part 2