THISIS50

p style=text-align: left;img src=http://api.ning.com/files/zRamNeM4Y2-jbnj41rQYKn4Dc896Z8*GXZRemGBn-aqmjlUnwMNEGu8XDa-u87PKGKnCoX25GwxK5GBt49jWaKBIzodjAYb6/peopleeminem2447680_1350.jpg alt= width=450 height=450//p bbr / A Los Angeles jury says the record company doesn't have to pay producers more for songs sold online, upholding the music industry's business model.br / br / A federal jury in Los Angeles ruled Friday that Eminem's music royalties don't change just because a song has been sold online.br / /bbr / bThe decision prevents/b, at least for now, an bupending of the music industry/b that could have greatly changed the bfinancial relationship/b between brecord labels/b and bartists/b, in which blabels/b have long bcommanded most of the proceeds from album sales./bbr / br / bThe Detroit music producers/b who were involved in tbhe rapper's early works/b, including his b1999 Grammy-winning album, The Slim Shady LP, sued Universal Music Group's Interscope Records,/b baccusing the music label of shortchanging them on royalty payments for music downloads and cellphone ring tones/bbr / br / bMark and Jeff Bass, brothers who own F.B.T. Productions, said/b itheir contract entitled them to 50% of the proceeds for songs sold through online stores including Apple Inc.'s iTunes or by cellphone operators such as Sprint./ibr / br / bThey argued that the songs Universal/b provided to online and mobile services amounted to music bmasters,/b from which infinite digital copies could be produced. bAs such, F.B.T. said/b it was entitled to a higher royalty rate than the 12% they would otherwise receive on the sale of a bsong/b or bmusic CD./bbr / br / bThe jury sided with the music company's interpretation that a song purchased online is no different from one bought in a store./bbr / br / It's saying that the digital download is the modern version of a record sale, bsaid music attorney Fred Davis, founder of law firm Davis, Shapiro, Lewit, Montone amp; Hayes in New York, who was not involved in the lawsuit./b And the economics to the artist are the same for a digital download as they were for the sale of a single, back in the glory years.br / br / bDavis said/b the ruling would have had enormous implications if it had favored bthe Bass brothers/b, because it would have forced an already struggling music industry to share a much higher percentage of bproceeds from sales with artists./bbr / bbr / Although federal district court rulings do not establish a legal precedent, they can influence judges weighing similar disputes. Eminem was not a party to the suit./bbr / br / bRichard S. Busch,/b an attorney representing the Basses, bsaid his clients/b were considering their legal options.br / br / We are very surprised by the jury's verdict, bBusch said/b. We don't understand it, and the fight's not over.br / br / bA Universal Music spokesman hailed the decision, saying,/b We are pleased with the jury's verdict.br / br / bThe jury did award F.B.T. $159,000 owed from underpaid royalties/bbr / br / a href=http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/music/la-fi-cotown-eminem7-2009mar07,0,3397740.storybiusource/u/i/b/a