After years of representing photographers based in New York City in his ongoing onslaught of copyright infringement suits against media companies, two new lawsuits find the attorney with plaintiffs in Florida and New Mexico. Targeted are Entercom Communications and Alpha Media. The suit against Entercom, filed May 31 in the U.S. District Court, Eastern District, surrounds the posting of an image on the website of its classic rock “98.5 K-Fox” KUFX San Jose, CA. The picture of guitarist Joe Perry was taken by Baron Wolman, a “renowned music photographer in the business of licensing his photographs to online and print media for a fee,” who resides in New Mexico, according to court documents obtained by Inside Radio.
“Entercom did not license the Photograph from Plaintiff for its article nor did Entercom have Plaintiff’s permission or consent to publish the Photograph on its Website,” Liebowitz writes in the suit.
Copycat Suit
A copycat suit filed on May 30 goes after Alpha Media for posting an allegedly unlicensed image on the site for its hot AC WRMF West Palm Beach, FL (97.9). Fort Lauderdale-based Michael Storms—a “professional photojournalist in the business of licensing his photographs to online, print and television stations for a fee”—is credited for taking the image of New York Mets baseball player Matt Harvey and Victoria’s Secret Model Adriana Lima “kissing and eating at the River Yacht Club in Miami.”
Both suits ask for the usual: “statutory damages up to $150,000 per work,” company profits, court costs, attorney fees and a jury trial.
