Copyright dispute case opened Wu Qingfeng can still sing his own song

Wu Qingfeng, the lead singer of the Soda Green Orchestra, and lin Weizhe, the former mentor of the Soda Green Orchestra, went to court over copyright disputes, and the two sides confronted each other for the first time in court on May 11, and the case will be pronounced on June 15.

confrontation

Lin Weizhe: Agreed on 50 songs in 5 years, Wu Qingfeng only wrote 5 songs

In court, Lin Weizhe said that he received a letter from Wu Qingfeng in October 2018, indicating that he would not renew the contract for singers, agents and songwriters at the end of 2018. In addition to being sad, he could not accept that Wu Qingfeng was going to terminate the cooperation between the two for more than ten years in a letter, so he found a lawyer to coordinate. The two sides discussed the details on December 4, during which only the singer and agency contracts were discussed, and no songwriting licensing contracts were involved. Moreover, because the contract between the two parties stated that "it must be terminated in writing 3 months before expiration", therefore, in his opinion, Wu Qingfeng's October depository letter did not have effect on the songwriting authorization contract, and the two parties automatically renewed the contract.

Lin Weizhe recalled that the public separation statement at the end of 2018 was just to create a happy ending for the outside world, but the contract should still follow the rules. In 2019, he saw Wu Qingfeng publicly singing soda green songs, and he sent a message saying that Wu Qingfeng was suspected of breach of contract. At that time, Wu Qingfeng opened the contract, also saw the provision of "written termination 3 months ago", and asked whether he was still an agent in 2019. Because Lin Weizhe had already licensed the music to Universal, there were still matters that needed to be clarified at the time, which was not conclusive at the time. Unexpectedly, before Wu Qingfeng replied to Universal, he publicly performed related songs, and the lawyer who originally cooperated with him actually went to Wu Qingfeng's new company as a consultant. This forced him to file a lawsuit in April 2019.

Lin Weizhe said that he had previously signed a contract with Wu Qingfeng and agreed on 50 songs in 5 years, and Wu Qingfeng only wrote 5 songs.

Wu Qingfeng: The suspension of the group in 2017 was forced by Lin Weizhe

Wu Qingfeng said in court that since he cooperated with Lin Weizhe, he has always received the treatment of newcomers, and he has more than 500 works completed independently with enthusiasm and pain, and he is willing to share them with Lin Weizhe, and he does not understand why he ignores the truth and friendship. Wu Qingfeng said that Lin Weizhe claimed to "give the greatest benefit", but even the most important "songwriting authorization" for singers was firmly grasped.

Wu Qingfeng also revealed that Soda Green's suspension of the group in 2017 was forced by Lin Weizhe, and it was not at all that he wanted to take a vacation; Lin Weizhe once asked him to leave the group and fly alone, which he categorically refused; when Lin Weizhe signed a contract with him for 5 years and 50 songs, he coaxed him to only be in the form of a contract and would not be forced, but now he is taking it out in court.

Response

Wu Qingfeng: Fighting a lawsuit, for more than ten years of hard work for six people in Soda Green

On the evening of May 11, Wu Qingfeng issued a long article detailing the entire process of the copyright dispute case.

In the article, Wu Qingfeng said that he and Lin Weizhe had signed a song licensing contract in 2008, but the two parties had terminated the contract on December 6, 2018.

Wu Qingfeng revealed that when the two sides met in September 2018, he told Lin Weizhe that he was nearly 40 years old and had always felt the impermanence of life. "I was worried that if I died suddenly, my family would have nothing, and I hoped that the songwriting rights would be taken back and disposed of myself." He agreed. ”

Wu Qingfeng also said that at that time, Lin Weizhe also stressed to Wu Qingfeng that "proper handling should be properly handled and well gathered and dispersed." Unexpectedly, he received a lawsuit from Mr. Lin four months later, and also trademarked the name of the song he created.

Wu Qingfeng said that he first asked his lawyer: "Can you simply admit defeat, lose money, and learn lessons when you spend money?" But the lawyer said: "You were the first defendant to sing a song you wrote yourself, there is no precedent." If you don't fight to the end, you will hurt the creators who will have the same encounter in the future. ”

Because of this, he decided to face it calmly and not compromise, for the creators who may have the same encounter in the future, and for the efforts of soda green six people for more than ten years.

parlance

Lawyer: Be sure to deal with the distribution and association of rights and authorizations

Wang Jun, chief partner of Beijing Taoan Law Firm and chief legal counsel of the Actors' Agent Committee of the China Performance Industry Association, said in an interview with a reporter from Beiqing Daily that the ownership of copyright depends in many cases on the agreement of the parties. If the creator exclusively grants the copyright or the right to authorize the song to the agency or other company, in this case, the songwriter has no right to authorize or exercise it independently.

Wang Jun also said that nowadays, some writers, singers and actors have set up studios and companies. To writers, singers and actors, this is my own company. But if the legal person of this studio has a dispute or conflict with the artist in the future, then the company has the right to stand up and say: I am the right holder, and I have the right to prohibit you from continuing to distribute, or continue to perform. "Legal persons and natural persons are two relatively independent subjects, and we must handle the distribution and association of rights and authorizations."

Article/Reporter Shou Penghuan Coordinator/Liu Jianghua