Yahoo! China sued by record labels

A music industry body is launching a series of lawsuits against Yahoo! China over alleged music piracy.

The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) claims Yahoo! China is infringing member companies' rights by making copyrighted songs available for playing and/or downloading without any permission from the record companies.

The IFPI is suing Yahoo! China for a total of $710,000 in damages. Eleven plaintiffs are each claiming around $64,000 - the maximum statutory damages allowed.

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John Kennedy, CEO and chairman of the IFPI, said in a statement: "Yahoo! China is engaged in infringing our members' rights in a major way."

Kennedy added the music body held negotiations with Yahoo! China and was close to reaching an agreement before the Chinese web portal walked away from the talks.

A Yahoo! China spokesman told Reuters: "Yahoo China respects intellectual property rights and supports the fight against music piracy.

"The courts have clearly established the precedent that search engine operators are not liable for content posted on third-party websites."

The IFPI represents more than a thousand members including record labels such as EMI, Sony BMG, Universal Music and Warner Music.