Major Music Publisher Sues USC Over Copyright Infringement Sports and growth of NIL drive use of music on college athletes' social media By Dan Daley, Audio Editor
Monday, March 17, 2025 - 10:45 am
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
The music industry's increasing willingness to resort to litigation to combat copyright infringement is on a collision course with college sports' growing affluence. Sony Music Entertainment (SME) has filed a copyright-infringement lawsuit against the University of Southern California (USC), alleging that the school repeatedly and willfully used unauthorized copyrighted music in its social-media posts.
Specifically, in a complaint filed at the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, SME's lawyers presented evidence of 283 posts by USC Athletics social-media accounts using 170 SME-owned songs, which the complaint says were unauthorized uses. Among the songs cited are Gimme More by Britney Spears, Run the World (Girls) by Beyonc , and Beat It by Michael Jackson.
The complaint alleges, USC also exploits Sony Music's hit recordings when they have just been released and are at the top of the charts.
The NCAA recorded nearly $1.4 billion in revenue for its 2024 fiscal year - the association's best in at least two decades, it asserts, and a nearly $91 million increase over the revenue total it reported for 2023. And the bulk of the NCAA's revenue comes from media rights and marketing deals tied to championship events.
It's Not an Isolated Incident The copyright-infringement problem is ongoing. Last year, 14 NBA teams - including the Atlanta Hawks, Miami Heat, and New York Knicks - were sued for copyright infringement by music publishers, including Kobalt Music Publishing and Artist Publishing Group. The lawsuits alleged that the teams used copyrighted music in social-media videos and on their official NBA websites without the copyright owner's permission. The music was used to promote team activities and products and to increase viewership and engage fans. Similar suits go back more than a decade.
The issue is exacerbated by the recent and rapid growth of name/image/likeness (NIL) rules, which allow college athletes to make and earn from endorsement deals, and they often use music on social media to promote those arrangements.
The SME complaint points to a social-media guideline document issued by USC, which notes, among other things, that all music is copyrighted[,] which means, prior to featuring it in your video, you must license it through the proper vendors and channels.
SME's complaint seeks to portray USC as a commercial enterprise, noting that the school recorded more than $7 billion in operating revenues for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2024, and reported $212 million in athletic revenue for the 2022-23 school year.
USC's sports programs bear the hallmarks of a commercial enterprise, the complaint states. USC's football coach Lincoln Riley was paid more than $19 million in the 2023 fiscal year, one of the highest-paid college football coaches in the nation. USC's football program led the nation in digital engagement and amassed nearly 21 million video views across social-media platforms in September 2024 alone.
The statutory damage for infringement is $150,000 per instance, not per song. Thus, the maximum statutory award for 283 infringements would be $42.45 million.
Sports leagues continue to be sued by music publishers. For instance, APM Music, which is jointly owned by Sony Music Publishing and Universal Music Publishing Group, last year filed suit against the AHL for alleged rampant copyright infringement of music on its teams' social-media posts.
North America Stories
28/01/2026
Top L-R: The Liars, Jazz Infernal, Living with a Visionary
Second Row L-R: Paper Trail, The Baddest Speechwriter of All, Crisis Actor
Third Row: The Boys and ...
28/01/2026
Airlines, cruise and tour operators double down on ad spend as Australians' prioritise travel
Sydney January 28, 2026 - New Nielsen Ad Intel data shows a...
28/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
28/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
28/01/2026
Marshall Electronics launches the CV420-27X, its next-generation ultra-high-definition (UHD) IP camera, at ISE 2026 (Stand 4N900). Engineered for modern IP-base...
28/01/2026
Grass Valley has announced that Television Mobiles Ltd. (TVM), one of Europe's leading independent outside broadcast providers, has carried out a major refu...
28/01/2026
AI, graphics and virtual software power new production capabilities
FOR-A is bringing remarkable new technologies to FOMEX, the Future of Media Exhibition (ex...
28/01/2026
Continuing a longstanding collaboration, Riedel Communications and Nordic media technology company Media Tailor have once again joined forces to deliver a state...
28/01/2026
Pebble has appointed Paul Nagle-Smith as vice president for customer fulfilment, strengthening its senior leadership focus on customer delivery and operational ...
28/01/2026
Cloud playout solutions provider, Veset has announced that leading Mexican broadcaster, TV Azteca is using Veset Nimbus on AWS as a disaster recovery (DR) playo...
28/01/2026
Ensuring it can keep pace with a rapidly evolving live sports market, Balkan broadcast facility provider MVP Most Valuable Production has upgraded its flags...
28/01/2026
Akamai Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: AKAM), the cloud solutions provider that powers and protects life online, and Yospace, the leader in dynamic ad insertion tec...
28/01/2026
The renowned Reykjavik City Theatre (RCT) recently underwent a major intercom system upgrade using Clear-Com solutions. This milestone project utilizes Clear-C...
28/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
28/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
28/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
28/01/2026
Boston Conservatory Orchestra Premieres a New Piano Concerto by Peter and Leonar...
28/01/2026
Back to All News
The Wait Is Over: Teaser Trailer Drops for Jo Nesbo's Dete...
28/01/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Announces a Fictional Miniseries Inspired by the Marta del Castillo Case
Entertainment
28 January 2026
GlobalSpain
Link copied to ...
28/01/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Announces Santiago Mitres New Film Starring Ver nica L...
28/01/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Unveils the Teaser Trailer for Berlin and the Lady wit...
27/01/2026
L-R: Jonathan Cuchacovich, Sonia Kennebeck, Alan Fischer, Daeil Kim, Andrew Sta...
27/01/2026
Nielsen will continue to drive growth and provide local audience measurement
in...
27/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
27/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
27/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
27/01/2026
Amagi Media Labs Limited, the only cloud-native SaaS provider offering end-to-end solutions across live production, content preparation, distribution, and monet...
27/01/2026
Miri Technologies Inc. today unveiled its V410 live 4K video encoder/decoder for streaming, IP-based production workflows and AV-over-IP distribution. Designed ...
27/01/2026
The Paul E. Tsongas Center at UMass Lowell in Massachusetts has chosen Ikegami cameras for incorporation into its broadcast-quality television production facili...
27/01/2026
SipRadius, specialists in secure, low latency media transport, will show the pro AV community its end-to-end solution for high quality content distribution and ...
27/01/2026
Hiltron will highlight the fruits of its 45-plus years of experience in satellite communications system integration and product development at the annual GovSat...
27/01/2026
Klvr will demonstrate how its Charger Pro solution is delivering cost reduction and performance benefits for live entertainment and pro AV markets at ISE 2026 (...
27/01/2026
Amino, a global media technology leader in enterprise video and digital signage, today announced that its Integrated Systems Europe (ISE) 2026 booth (4N700) wil...
27/01/2026
ANI, India's leading news agency and a major content provider across the Asia Pacific region, today announced a significant expansion of its long standing p...
27/01/2026
Independent analysis confirms faster encoding, lower CPU usage, and improved perceptual quality compared to CBR and CRF
VisualOn, a leader in multimedia playba...
27/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
27/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
27/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
27/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
27/01/2026
Back to All News
That Night Premiering on Netflix March 13
Entertainment
27 January 2026
GlobalSpain
Link copied to clipboard
DOWNLOAD THE KEY ART
DOWNLO...
27/01/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Kicks Off 15-Year Anniversary Celebrations in Brazil W...
27/01/2026
Back to All News
When It Feels Real, Is It Still a Lie? The Art of Sarah' ...
27/01/2026
Back to All News
That Night premiering on Netflix March 13
Entertainment
27 January 2026
GlobalSpain
Link copied to clipboard
DOWNLOAD THE KEY ART
DOWNLO...
27/01/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Revealed the Future of Mexican Stories Coming in 2026
Entertainment
27 January 2026
GlobalMexico
Link copied to clipboard
Among t...
27/01/2026
Back to All News
Four New Japan Titles Announced for 2026: Viral Hit', On...
27/01/2026
Back to All News
What's Next on Netflix from Japan: Expanding the Possibili...
27/01/2026
AI, graphics and virtual software power new production capabilities...
26/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
26/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
Major Music Publisher Sues USC Over Copyright Infringement Sports and growth of NIL drive use of music on college athletes' social media By Dan Daley, Audio Editor 
