BMI wins copyright lawsuit against bar-and-grill owner

A man who ignored more than 20 warnings about copyright infringement has been confirmed as liable for playing music without a licence.

Roy Barr, who owns the Rafters Bar and Grill in Canton, Ohio, had allowed live and recorded music to be played on his premises without seeking righ tholders’ permission.

For three years, collecting society BMI tried to contact Barr about signing a licensing agreement, but received no response. After BMI sued Barr, a US district court found him liable for copyright infringement.

But on appeal he argued that because he didn’t actually perform any of the music—the bands playing the music and the people turning on the records did—he wasn’t liable.

In a June 6 ruling at the US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, however, Barr was found vicariously liable for his “pervasive” infringement.

As the majority owner of the venue, Barr had the right and ability to supervise the infringing conduct, said the court, and instead let the infringement continue while “reaping the profits from it”.

His claims of ignorance did not exempt his liability, the court added, as US copyright laws encourage “people like Roy” to police performances in the first place.

“Roy, who represents himself, makes a handful of other arguments against the district court’s judgment,” the court added. “We have considered them all, and find merit in none of them.”

The case will return to the US District Court for the Northern District of Ohio.