source: theGuardian

Chuck D is suing the label that owns the rights to the first five Public Enemy albums for $100m in royalties. He has formed an unlikely trifecta with Rob Zombie and the estate of Rick James, each of which is also suing Universal Music Group over their treatment of revenue from digital music sales.

“UMG is paying … roughly 25% of the royalties that it should be paying them for moneys received from music download providers,” argued Chuck D’s suit. The rapper claims Universal owes its artists and producers “hundreds of millions of dollars” from the sale of downloads and ringtones, citing a major ruling from earlier this year. In that case, Eminem’s lawyers argued that digital sales should attract a higher payment than the standard royalty from the record label, on the grounds that online agreements count as licensing deals, and the artist should therefore receive 50% of net revenues, not 18%.

Universal acquired the rights to Public Enemy’s first five albums when it bought Def Jam in 1998. The contracts for legacy acts such as Public Enemy do not have explicit terms for digital royalties, though they are commonplace for new signings. Chuck D says Universal pays just $80.33 in royalties for every 1,000 song downloads, and $49.89 for every 1,000 ringtones; he contends these sales should be treated as licences, not unit sales, boosting figures from $80.33 to $315.85 and from $49.89 to $660.

In a statement to the Wrap.com, Universal declared it would “vigorously defend” against Chuck D’s lawsuit. “This complaint suffers from serious flaws and weaknesses, not the least of which is that the claims asserted are not appropriate for class treatment.”