Jax Beach bar accused of not paying royalties for music

ASCAP sues Surfer The Bar of copyright infringement

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A lawsuit filed Monday in federal court in accuses a Jacksonville Beach bar of copyright infringement for public performance of music.

The general manager of Surfer The Bar did not respond to an emailed request for comment made by the Jacksonville Daily Record.

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Associate editor Max Marbut said plaintiffs in the action are WB Music Corp., Party Rock Music, Yeah Baby Music, Eskaywhy Publishing, Afroman Music and Universal Music Corp. Defendants named in the complaint are Jax Beach Hospitality Group LLC, Gregory Saig, Robert Tilka and Austin Towery.

According to the complaint, the bar allowed on at least three documented occasions unauthorized public performance of the plaintiffs’ copyrighted musical works.

The lawsuit also states that the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) has made more than 50 attempts since February 2017 to contact principles of Jax Beach Hospitality Group LLC, owner of Surfer the Bar, to offer an ASCAP license for the venue.

The defendants have refused all of ASCAP’s license offers, according to the lawsuit.

The plaintiffs ask the court to permanently restrain the bar from publicly performing copyrighted material and that the defendants be ordered to pay $750 to $30,000 for each of the three counts of alleged infringement, plus attorney fees.

The complaint is one of 13 infringement lawsuits ASCAP has filed against bars and restaurants across the country.