Bad Bunny sues fan over YouTube concert footage

Bad Bunny has launched a lawsuit against a fan who posted “bootleg” concert footage from the artist’s recent Utah show.

The Puerto Rican rapper, real name Benito Antonio Martinez Ocasio, is suing Eric Guillermo Madronal Garrone over videos recorded at his 21 February performance at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah, which were uploaded to Garrone’s MADforliveMUSIC YouTube channel.

The suit, which claims copyright infringement, violation of anti-bootlegging statute and false endorsement, was filed in the Northern District of California after Garrone, who lives in Madrid, Spain, contested the removal of the clips from YouTube.

“Each of the unauthorised bootlegs, both individually and collectively, negatively impacts the market for authorised uses of the Bad Bunny Works by, among other things, luring YouTube viewers and associated advertising revenue away from authorised videos of the Bad Bunny Works and the official Bad Bunny YouTube channel, and towards the unauthorised bootlegs,” reads the lawsuit.

YouTube took down the ten videos following a request by the rapper but – after receiving a counter-notification from the defendant – the platform informed Ocasio’s representatives that it would repost the recordings by 8 March unless a lawsuit was filed seeking injunctive relief “preventing Garrone’s continued infringements”.

“Ocasio has suffered and will continue to suffer substantial, immediate, and irreparable injury, for which there is no adequate remedy at law”

According to Billboard, Garrone is claiming “legitimate use of the content” and says the takedown notice “constitutes a serious detriment to my informative and outreach activities”.

But Osacio argues the recordings “do not qualify as fair use because, among other reasons, they are direct recordings without any transformative nature or purpose”.

“Defendants have objected to the removal of the unauthorised bootlegs from YouTube, refused to agree not to re-post the unauthorised bootlegs, and requested that YouTube reinstate the unauthorised bootlegs on the MADforliveMUSIC YouTube channel,” adds the filing.

“As a result, Ocasio has suffered and will continue to suffer substantial, immediate, and irreparable injury, for which there is no adequate remedy at law. Unless enjoined by this court, defendants will continue to infringe Ocasio’s rights in the Bad Bunny Works and in other works belonging to Ocasio. Ocasio is therefore entitled to injunctive relief to enjoin defendants’ ongoing and future infringement.”

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