Bad Bunny has sued a concertgoer who refused to take down videos posted to YouTube containing “substantial portions” of his recent show in Utah, according to a lawsuit filed by the reggaeton artist.
The rare legal dispute over copyright infringement, fair use of an artist’s work and the promotional value of fan videos online was triggered by a response from the YouTuber who posted the videos.
The complaint filed in a federal court in California last week alleges that Eric Guillermo Madroñal Garrone, the founder and owner of the YouTube channel MADforliveMUSIC, was asked to remove 10 videos featuring several of Bad Bunny’s full songs from his concert at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Feb. 21.
The videos contained “unauthorized bootleg” footage that infringed on Bad Bunny’s copyrights, the complaint alleges, prompting the singer to submit a takedown request through YouTube to have the videos removed from the platform.
Madroñal Garrone responded to the request with a formal counternotice defending his right to post the videos, citing his rights to freedom of expression and arguing the footage showed a “newsworthy event of high public interest,” according to evidence attached to the complaint by Bad Bunny’s attorneys.
Bad Bunny’s Salt Lake City concert served as the kickoff of his “Most Wanted Tour” in North America.
Following Madroñal Garrone’s response, YouTube notified Bad Bunny the platform would not be able to proceed with the takedown request unless he responded with evidence of legal action, according to evidence attached to the complaint by Bad Bunny’s attorneys.
As of Thursday, the MADforliveMUSIC YouTube channel was not available. It’s unclear if Madroñal Garrone had monetized the contents of his channel.
YouTube did not respond to a request for comment.
TikTok and Instagram pages that appear to be connected to the MADforliveMUSIC YouTube channel remain operational as of Thursday.
Madroñal Garrone did not respond to messages seeking comment. Court records do not list an attorney for Madroñal Garrone.
Disputes over alleged copyright infringement on social media and other online platforms happen often, but they rarely escalate to this level.
Fan clips from concerts posted online and on social media are generally seen to have some kind of promotional value — creating buzz, excitement and anticipation over an artist’s performance. But the risk of serious copyright infringement rises when entire songs or shows are posted online, especially if the accounts monetize their content.
The Digital Millennium Copyright Act lets artists like Bad Bunny file takedown requests to online platforms like YouTube, requiring the site to pull down the allegedly infringing material. In most cases, especially those that include the use of extensive footage of full materials, the person on the receiving end of the request removes the material. And the dispute usually ends there.
But the Digital Millennium Copyright Act also allows users to object to such requests if they think the materials in question should be considered a “fair use” and ineligible for removal.
In the lawsuit, Bad Bunny is seeking up to $150,000 for each of the 10 songs recorded and posted to Madroñal Garrone’s YouTube channel.
Court records show Madroñal Garrone was notified about the lawsuit on Monday.
A publicist and two attorneys representing Bad Bunny did not respond to requests for comment.
