Online company EMusic is joining the music industry’s fight against Napster by filing its own copyright-infringement suit against the file-swapping company.
The suit, filed late Tuesday in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, accuses Napster of contributory and vicarious copyright infringement and unfair competition. EMusic is seeking statutory damages of $150,000 per infringed use and has asked for a jury trial.
EMusic’s unfair competition claim alleges that Napster, by offering downloads for free, has caused EMusic “substantial injury,” including loss of customers and profits. EMusic offers unlimited downloads of its catalog to users who pay $9.99 a month for the service.