PRO Music Rights and Sosa Entertainment have filed a $1 billion lawsuit against Spotify over alleged copyright infringement and deceptive trade practices in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida.

Key allegations in the lawsuit:

• Spotify failed to pay royalties on over 550 million streams
• Spotify removed plaintiffs' content in May 2017 without notice or justification
• The removal disrupted Sosa's relationship with Merlin, which represents independent labels
• Content was allegedly removed for anti-competitive reasons

The lawsuit claims Spotify:

• Failed to fulfill its obligations as a streaming service
• Willfully removed content for anti-competitive reasons
• Engaged in unfair and deceptive business practices
• Interfered with third-party contracts
• Performed songs without proper licensing

This follows another recent lawsuit from Eminem's publisher Eight Mile Style, which challenges portions of the Music Modernization Act related to Spotify's previous royalty payments and copyright infringements.

The case (Pro Music Rights LLC et al v. Spotify AB et al., Case No. 2:19-cv-00843) was filed by attorneys Richard Gora and Sinead Rafferty of Gora LLC, and Vito Roppo of Colosseum Counsel, PLLC. PRO Music Rights founder Jake Noch stated they intend to have a Florida jury hold Spotify accountable for intellectual property infringement and unfair trade practices.

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