July 11, 2018) is a United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit case concerning copyright infringement of sound recording.
[2] The Ninth Circuit upheld the District Court's decision against Williams and Thicke and affirmed liability of millions of dollars in damages.
It was established that "Got to Give It Up" is "entitled to broad protection against copyright infringement liability because musical compositions are not confined to a narrow range of expression".
[3] “Blurred Lines" is a song performed by Robin Thicke, featuring Pharrell Williams and T.I., and the trio shared writing credits.
[6] Thicke stated that at the time of recording, he was "high on Vicodin and alcohol when [he] showed up at the studio", and so "[Williams] had the beat and he wrote almost every single part of the song".
[9] Judge John A. Kronstadt, after reviewing competing musicologist reports, found "substantial similarity [between "Blurred Lines" and "Got to Give It Up"] to present a genuine issue of material fact", and that the "signature phrases, hooks, bass lines, keyboard chords, harmonic structures and vocal melodies" in both songs were similar".
[11] Plaintiffs filed a successful motion in limine pleading that Gaye's sound recording of "Got to Give It Up" be excluded from being played during the trial.
The amount was reduced by the District Court to $5.3 million, along with 50 percent royalties on future songwriter and publishing revenue of "Blurred Lines".
[16] On January 11, 2016, Gaye's family moved an application for approximately $3.5 million in attorney's fee and costs on the grounds that the jury verdict prevailed on merits, rather than on a technical issue.
Later, a number of amicus curiae briefs were filed in support of the appeal by musicians, musicologists and copyright scholars, including John Oates and R.
In 2022, music business writer Ted Gioia commented that the decision was a watershed moment for music writers and publishers because of the increased risk of copyright lawsuits and added expense that it caused: "The risks have increased enormously since the "Blurred Lines" jury decision of 2015—with the result that additional cash gets transferred from today's musicians to old (or deceased) artists.