Industry

Chinese Pop Star Jay Chou Sues NetEase for Unfair Competition

Apr 11, 2023, 10:38am2023/04/11 10:38:22 Pandaily

On April 10, news about Jay Chou, a Taiwanese singer, songwriter, record producer, rapper, actor and television personality suing Chinese technology company NetEase<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder /> for unfair competition went viral on Weibo, a Twitter-like platform. The lawsuit is related to a promotional event that took place last summer for one of NetEase<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder />‘s online games.

According to the commercial information search platform Tianyancha, Chou and his music production company JVR Music have filed a lawsuit against Guangzhou NetEase<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder /> Computer System Co., Ltd., NetEase<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder /> (Hangzhou) Network Co., Ltd., and Hangzhou NetEase<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder /> ThunderFire Technology Co., Ltd. The case is scheduled to be heard in a court located in Hangzhou on April 17. It’s worth noting that NetEase<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder /> Cloud Music, which operates the music streaming service under NetEase<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder />, is not involved as a defendant in this case.

JVR Music has confirmed to The Paper that they are filing a lawsuit against NetEase<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder /> for offering Jay Chou’s album “Greatest Works of Art” and concert tickets as gifts during the promotion of their online game “Tianxia 3”. JVR Music claims that this action by NetEase<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder /> constitutes infringement, as it caused confusion among consumers who mistakenly believed there was a specific connection between the online game and Jay Chou.

After the news was announced, netizens had varying reactions. Some recalled NetEase<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder /> Cloud Music’s unauthorized release of Chou’s music in April 2018, while others expressed their desire for a unified platform that combines music and video copyrights to avoid the inconvenience of switching between platforms when listening to songs or watching dramas.

SEE ALSO: JVR Music and Mints to Create Jay Chou-Themed Metaverse Space

In recent years, JVR Music and NetEase<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder /> have experienced ongoing friction. In 2018, Tencent Music Entertainment Group<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder /> accused NetEase<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder /> Cloud Music of copyright infringement for continuing to provide several works by JVR Music after the authorization expired on March 31 of that year. Despite the exclusive copyright being lifted in July 2021, NetEase<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder /> has yet to regain music rights for Chou’s songs. JVR Music renewed its contract with Tencent<img decoding="async" class="trade-card__loading" layout="fixed" height="50" width="50" src="https://assets.pandaily.com/uploads/2021/12/loading.png" placeholder /> and all works by artists under their label will continue to be available on platforms such as QQ Music, Kugou Music, and Kuwo Music.