YouTube-MP3.org agrees to shut down after getting sued by labels
Say goodbye to the largest audio-ripping site, YouTube-MP3.org.
A proposed final judgment has been reached between the site and record labels including Sony Music, UMG and Warner Bros.
Although the document hasn’t received the Hancock from the judge, the decision tilts favour towards the labels and includes an undisclosed settlement fee as well as an order to transfer the domain in question to a party representing the labels.
Last year, labels filled a copyright infringement claim against the ‘world’s largest audio-ripping website,’ as YouTube-MP3 allows users to convert YouTube links into downloadable MP3 audio files.
It is said that YouTube-MP3 is responsible of 40% of all illegal audio-ripping and a 2016 study by the IFPI revealed that audio-ripping is, in fact, one of the most significant forms of piracy threatening the recording industry.
Ripping the stream
In the claim, 304 songs that have been illegally ripped are specifically named, including Zedd’s “Clarity”, Missy Elliott’s “Get Your Freak On” and Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way.”
$150 000 was sought out for each instance of proven copyright infringement, as they argue that YouTube-MP3 is guilty of enabling illegal distribution as well as profiting off-of label-owned content by collecting ad revenue via site-redirection.
The labels claimed that “tens, or even hundreds, of millions of tracks are illegally copied and distributed by stream-ripping services each month.”
The verdict, if signed, would lead to YouTube-MP3 transferring the domain name to a representative for the labels.
If the site owner fails to comply with the verdict, registrars fro YouTube-MP3 would have 24 hours to shut down said site.
As for the moment, YouTube-MP3.org is still ‘technically’ live, although they are in the “We are sorry, this service is not available from your jurisdiction” phase of their demise.
