Asian Fortune Your source for all things Asian American
By Gaylord Garcia
Michelle Phan, a Youtube star and a beauty guru with more than 6.7 million channel subscribers is getting sued by Ultra Records – an Electronic Dance Music label – for copyright infringement. Ultra Records filed the lawsuit on July 18th, 2014 claiming Phan allegedly used music from the label’s artists in her YouTube makeup tutorial videos without permission. Michelle Phan and her legal team are now fighting back against the copyright infringement lawsuit. Her lawyers are claiming that Phan had every right to use the music because Ultra who owned the rights agreed that Phan could use the music.
According to the lawsuit, Ultra Records sought up to $150,00 in damage per infringement, and that the “preliminary” number of Phan’s infringement stands at 45 instances. This puts the total damages at around $7 million and could possibly rise should Ultra Records name any more instances of blatant copyright infringement. Sure enough, three days after Ultra Records launched a lawsuit against the Youtube star, Phan and her legal team issued a counterclaim, in which she “contends that she received from Ultra, Ultra’s consent to use compositions and master recording by Ultra artists” and that “under controlling law, Ultra cannot revoke its consent”. Michelle Phan who issued a counterclaim is now looking for compensation for the ad revenue she lost from Ultra’s copyright infringement claims.
A statement from Michelles Phan’s representatives said that her “intention has always been to promote other artists, creating a platform for their work to be showcased to an international audience. Kaskade, whose music has been featured in Michelle’s videos, has publicly defended Michelle Phan against Ultra’s claims and acknowledges the success he’s gained from her support”.
Kaskade, who is also a Grammy-nominated DJ and whose work Michelle Phan is alleged to have used, showed his support and his disbelief on Twitter. Kaskade tweeted “Summary: I am not suing @MichellePhan + @ultrarecords isn’t my lapdog. I can’t do much about the lawsuit except voice support for her.”
Michelle Phan claims that in July 2009 she was in contact with Ultra Records asking for permissions to use the company’s songs in return for crediting the artists and including iTunes purchase links of the music included in her Youtube videos. This year, Ultra Records LLC and Ultra International Music Publishing LLC filed suit in the U.S. District Court in Los Angeles while Phan’s law firm, Grodsky and Olecki LLP, filed the counterclaim in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.
Michelle Phan started posting makeup and self-help video tutorials on her homegrown Youtube channel in 2007. Her videos went viral on Youtube and amassed millions of subscribers. Her popularity in the video-sharing website has led to endorsement deals, development deals, and even landing a contract with one of the world’s largest cosmetic manufacturers – L’Oreal Cosmetics. Michelle Phan’s endorsements could generate her more than $5 million dollars a year. Michelle Phan has definitely turned her makeup and self-help videos into a lucrative career. Her net worth is currently estimated at $3 million dollars.
