A well-known streamer sang a song and ended up in a lawsuit, paying 100,000 in compensation.
[4] Compiled from: Red Star News
[3] Recently, the topic "Famous streamer PDD sued for singing during a live stream" has drawn netizens' attention.
Case review
[4] PDD's real name is Liu Mou. He was previously a professional e-sports player in League of Legends and is now a game streamer with 7.714 million followers on Weibo. It is reported that PDD sang "Borrow Five Hundred Years from Heaven" during a live stream, and the original author sued him for 100,000 yuan in compensation.
[5] PDD himself revealed the lawsuit for singing during a live stream. He said that although he finds it hard to accept and never expected to be sued for singing, he will actively cooperate as a law-abiding citizen, pay compensation if required, and will not sing the song again in the future.
In the screenshot PDD himself made public, the legal department of his streaming platform also advised him not to sing during live streams for the time being. If he really wants to sing, he should use the built-in song request software of the streaming platform; singing through software from other platforms may lead to similar issues again.
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[1] The People's Republic of China
Copyright Law
[1] Article 24
Works may be used in the following circumstances without permission from, or payment of remuneration to, the copyright owner, provided that the name or title of the author and the title of the work are indicated, and the normal use of the work is not affected, nor are the legitimate rights and interests of the copyright owner unreasonably harmed:
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(9) Free performance of a published work, where the performance does not charge the public any fees, nor pays remuneration to the performers, and is not for profit;
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Article 53
The following infringements shall bear civil liability as stipulated in Article 52 of this Law according to the circumstances; if the infringement also harms the public interest, the copyright administrative department shall order the cessation of the infringement, issue a warning, confiscate illegal gains, and confiscate or destroy the infringing copies as well as the materials, tools, equipment, etc., mainly used for producing such copies. If the illegal business turnover exceeds 50,000 yuan, a fine of not less than one time but not more than five times the illegal business turnover may be imposed; if there is no illegal business turnover, it is difficult to calculate, or it is less than 50,000 yuan, a fine of not more than 250,000 yuan may be imposed; if a crime is constituted, criminal liability shall be pursued according to law.
(1) Reproducing, distributing, performing, screening, broadcasting, compiling, or communicating to the public via information networks a work without the permission of the copyright owner, except as otherwise provided in this Law;
(2) publishing books for which another person has exclusive publishing rights;
(3) Reproducing or distributing sound recordings or video recordings of a performance, or communicating the performance to the public via information networks without the permission of the performer, except as otherwise provided in this Law;
(4) Reproducing, distributing, or communicating to the public via information networks sound recordings or video recordings produced by the producer without the permission of the producer, except as otherwise provided in this Law;
(5) Broadcasting, reproducing, or communicating to the public via information networks a broadcast or television program without permission, except as otherwise provided in this Law;
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[1] The author's perspective
Game streamer PDD sang unauthorized works during a live stream, infringing on others' copyright and violating the legitimate rights and interests of the copyright owners. Since the streamer was working during the live stream, both the platform's salary and the audience's tips are part of the streamer's income; therefore, PDD's actions were profit-oriented.
Some people believe compensation is necessary, but the other party's demand for 100,000 yuan in compensation is too high. Regardless of the final compensation amount, this incident serves as a warning to all streamers: although live streaming is popular, while streamers try every means to win over audiences, they must also be mindful of legal boundaries. The internet is not a lawless place, or they will eventually pay a heavy price.
