Musi's Legal Battle: The Legality of Free Music Streaming Under Scrutiny

Musi's Legal Battle: The Legality of Free Music Streaming Under Scrutiny The free music streaming app Musi has been embroiled in controversy over its legality, and a recent lawsuit filed by the developer against Apple could finally determine its fate. Musi, which obtains music from YouTube and offers it for free, maintains its practices are lawful, but Google disagrees

Musi's Legal Battle: The Legality of Free Music Streaming Under Scrutiny

The free music streaming app Musi has been embroiled in controversy over its legality, and a recent lawsuit filed by the developer against Apple could finally determine its fate. Musi, which obtains music from YouTube and offers it for free, maintains its practices are lawful, but Google disagrees. This impasse led to Apple removing Musi from the AppStore, prompting the developer to argue that the removal was unjustified.

Launched in 2016, Musi's free and ad-free music streaming service quickly captured a large user base, particularly among teenagers. By early this year, Musi had surpassed many of its competitors in size, registering over 66 million downloads, according to SensorTower, exceeding even Pandora, Deezer, and Amazon Music. Analytics firm Pixalete reported that Musi briefly became the top-grossing iOS app in North America in February.

Musi sources its music from YouTube, but Google claims this violates its terms of service. Musi counters that it functions merely as a web browser and does not violate any regulations. Ultimately, YouTube lodged a complaint with Apple, urging the removal of Musi. After failing to reach an agreement with YouTube, Apple ultimately removed Musi from the AppStore.

YouTube claims that the reason for the removal was Musi's failure to engage in communication, but the developer refutes this, providing evidence that it was YouTube that stopped responding. According to ArsTechnica, Musi has filed a lawsuit against Apple, accusing it of improperly removing the app.

In the lawsuit, Musi alleges that Apple, without any evidence of Musi infringing on intellectual property or violating service terms, abruptly removed Musi from the AppStore, an unjustified and unreasonable act that violated Apple's developer agreement terms. The agreement stipulates that removal is only permitted when Apple "reasonably concludes" that an app infringes upon another's intellectual property. Musi argues that Apple had no reason to "reasonably" believe YouTube's claims.

Musi demands that the court immediately reinstate its presence on the AppStore and prevent Apple from removing apps based on third-party complaints without substantial evidence. The jury will now determine whether Apple's actions were justified, indirectly deciding Musi's legality.

Musi isn't the only free music streaming service that sources music from YouTube, but it is one of the most prominent. If the court rules against Musis developer, YouTube and Apple may be compelled to engage in a "whack-a-mole" style battle against other similar services, presenting a larger challenge.

The outcome of this lawsuit will have profound implications for the future of music streaming. It will not only determine the fate of Musi but also impact the legitimacy and direction of other similar services. The crux of this legal battle lies in balancing intellectual property protection, platform responsibility, and consumer interests. The final verdict will provide crucial guidance for the future of music streaming.