Musi Inc. v. Apple Inc.: Alleged Copyright Infringement
Musi Inc. is suing Apple for removing the app from the App Store. Was Apple justified in its removal of Musi, or was Musi correctly operating within Youtube’s terms of service?
Attribution
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Musi Inc. has filed a lawsuit against Apple for improper removal, breach of contract, and breach of good faith dealing. Apple removed Musi from their app store this past September for infringing YouTube’s copyrighted content, from which YouTube had acted as a third-party complainant. As the complaint mentions, YouTube's accusations were unsupported. The specific sections allegedly violated were not cited in the email to Musi. YouTube had previously raised questions about Musi’s functionality, to which Musi had accordingly adjusted or provided details on how the app complies with YouTube’s Terms of Service.
Musi is a Canada-based app, launched in 2016, that allows ad-free music streaming. The app streams free, uninterrupted music originally available on YouTube. The app’s main user base is young, predominantly teenagers. Users enjoy how the app is free to use, and ad-free, unlike most music streaming apps, which contain music interrupted by ads unless a subscription is purchased. The appeal of the app is clear, especially when compared to their subscription-based counterparts. Prior to its removal from the App Store, it was bigger than other streaming apps, estimated to have upwards of 66 million downloads.
Since the app’s release, legal concerns have been raised. Although Musi has openly advertised its use of YouTube, legal experts are unsure whether the app is committing copyright infringement.
Musi is an iOS-based application with content that comes straight from YouTube. All iPhones have iOS installed. No app can operate on an iPhone without being iOS-based. Furthermore, third-party developers must enter the Developer Agreement before creating an iOS-based app. All terms and conditions must be agreed to before the app is viable for the App Store. In the filed complaint, Musi stated that the app does not rely on YouTube’s Application Programming Interface, nor does its servers store, process, or transmit YouTube videos. Musi’s removal from the app store bars accessibility for current and future users. As a result, Musi has alleged that Apple has caused both financial and reputational harm to its business.
Musi claims that they were in full compliance with YouTube’s Terms of Service when providing content from their website. YouTube’s counsel claimed that the app had accessed and used YouTube’s non-public interfaces, used the service commercially, and violated a prohibition on the sale of advertising “on any page of any website or application that only contains Content from the service or where Content from the service is the primary basis for such sales.” As stated in the complaint, Musi attempted to address YouTube’s copyright infringement claims in 2021, but YouTube failed to respond until March 2023 and July 2024. Once the company responded, they alleged that Musi infringed upon their intellectual property without giving any explanation or reasoning as to how they were infringing. Musi attempted to address YouTube’s concerns after their response but was met with no explanation or response. Not only that, but Apple did not perform an investigation into the claims. YouTube and Apple have both inexplicably ignored Musi’s attempts to resolve the situation, raising concerns about a breach of good faith and dealing.
It is unclear as to whether Musi will be reinstated in the App Store. However, if the app truly had been violating YouTube’s copyright, the question remains as to why the app remained in the App Store for eight years. This may be due to YouTube strengthening its enforcement of third-party apps that violate its Terms of Service this year. YouTube prohibits interfering with its own Application Programming Interface (“API”) but allows clients to use its own. However, Musi does not utilize Youtube’s API and plays content based on the user’s interactions within Youtube.