Overview

• The suit targets Napster, parent Rhapsody International and owner Infinite Reality for failing to pay $9.2 million in licensing fees after streaming Sony’s catalog for over a year.
• Sony is seeking statutory damages of up to $150,000 per infringed song, amounting to roughly $36–37.5 million based on a list of 240 works.
• After Infinite Reality acquired Napster for $207 million in March, Sony activated a termination right but agreed to a four-part payment plan that went unpaid.
• Sony sent a breach notice in May and formally ended its licensing agreements in June, yet Napster has continued to reproduce and publicly perform Sony Music recordings without authorization.
• This lawsuit adds to Napster’s mounting legal challenges, following June claims by SoundExchange and Sonos for more than $3.4 million in unpaid royalties.