On August 20, 2018, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a lower court’s ruling that digital remastering of pre-1972 sound recordings creates a new sound recording entitled to copyright protection.[1]  In so holding, the Ninth Circuit rejected the Defendant radio broadcasters’ claims that, because the pre-1972 sound recordings had been remastered from analog sound recordings into digital formats, they were entitled to federal copyright protection. The Plaintiffs, a group of record companies that own sound recordings of classic artists such as The Everly Brothers and Al Green, filed a class action lawsuit against CBS Corporation and CBS Radio Inc.,… Read more