In a high-profile lawsuit concerning unpaid royalties, the Harry Fox Agency (HFA) has issued a strong rebuttal against allegations made by Eminem's publisher, Eight Mile Style.

The dispute began in August 2019 when Eight Mile Style sued Spotify for allegedly infringing on 243 Eminem tracks. The potential damages could reach $36.45 million ($150,000 per track) if Spotify is found guilty of willful copyright infringement. Eight Mile Style also seeks additional compensation from Spotify's streaming revenue and equity value.

Spotify denied these claims, stating Eight Mile Style had received "substantial royalty payments" for nearly a decade. The streaming platform later involved Kobalt Music Publishing as a third-party defendant, asserting that Kobalt, as Eight Mile's agent, had licensed them to distribute the compositions.

Eight Mile Style subsequently added HFA as a defendant, alleging that HFA and Spotify orchestrated a "fraudulent scheme" to hide Spotify's failure to obtain proper mechanical licenses for Eminem's music.

In a recent filing to a Nashville federal court, HFA requested an oral argument regarding its motion to dismiss the amended complaint. The agency argues that the complexity of the case warrants verbal clarification to aid the court's understanding and promote judicial efficiency.

Eight Mile Style has not yet responded to HFA's request. Meanwhile, Spotify continues to expand its services, recently patenting AI-powered "spoken words analyzer" technology and planning its launch in South Korea for early 2021.

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