On August 24, 2009, members of the National Music Publishers Association filed suit in the US District Court for the Central District of California against LiveUniverse, Inc. and its owner Brad Greenspan, alleging copyright infringement associated with LiveUniverse’s publication of music lyrics. The Complaint is not yet available through the court’s web site.

The publishers filed a similar suit against Motive Force, LLC and others in the Western District of Pennsylvania in connection with its site, LyricWiki. Peermusic, III, Ltd. et al. v. Motive Force LLC et al., Civil Action No. 2:09-cv-01137-RCM (filed Aug. 24, 2009).

More information about the disputes can be found here:

* Jay Miller, “Music Publishers Group Files Copyright Suit,” Wall Street Journal, Aug. 24, 2009.

* National Music Publishers Association Press Release, “Music publishers pursue illegal lyric sites; Legal marketplace harmed when unlicensed sites go unchecked,” Aug. 24, 2009.