It's hard enough for bands to keep their new songs from turning up on the Internet before their official release. Now they apparently have to worry about accidentally leaking new tracks themselves.
According to several accounts in the U.K. press, U2 frontman Bono was relaxing at his villa in the south of France recently when he decided to play a few songs from the band's upcoming album. He played them so loud, however, that a passer-by reportedly heard them, recorded several songs on his cellphone, and then uploaded them to YouTube.
The songs have since disappeared, and according to one report the sound quality was fairly low, filled with the cries of seagulls and other background noise. But the irony of the band's own lead singer accidentally broadcasting unreleased songs is pretty rich, especially since the band's manager, Paul McGuinness, has been so vocal about the dangers of piracy and the need for an "ISP tax."
At least one business in Britain has been sued for something similar. The British Performing Rights Society launched a claim against the Kwik-Fit auto-repair chain, alleging that the company routinely played music so loud that customers could hear it, and that this created a "public performance" for which royalty payments were required.
Bono, of course, owns the rights to U2's music, so it's unlikely that he will face any legal repercussions as a result of his "performance."
For more details and links, please see the Ingram 2.0 blog at globetechnology.com.
