Report: Warner Music wins China copyright suit

State news agency reports that Hong Kong subsidiary wins legal battle with music video karaoke firm.

A Hong Kong subsidiary of Warner Music Group has won a copyright infringement lawsuit against a Chinese karaoke company that played the label's music video without permission, according to the state news agency.

The official Xinhua News Agency reported today that the Kunming Intermediate People's Court ordered that Haoledi Music Entertainment Co. pay Warner Music Hong Kong 12,000 yuan ($1,500), and immediately stop playing Warner Music's songs at its karaoke parlors across China.

The news agency did not indicate when the verdict was delivered. It is not the only lawsuit Warner has filed in China. Warner previously accused karaoke chain Partyworld, based in Taiwan, of playing its music videos in its karaoke parlors without permission.
US officials have stepped up demands in recent months for the Chinese government in Beijing to do more to stamp out rampant piracy in the republic.