Fyre Festival Copyright Infringement Lawsuit with Netflix and Jerry Media

Does having multiple Emmy Award nominations protect you from a copyright lawsuit? No, like Netflix and their production partner Jerry Media are finding out the hard way. This isn’t the first brush with trouble for Jerry Media.

You might remember the company as the social media marketing company responsible for promoting and marketing the disastrous 2017 Fyre Festival. This time, both Netflix and Jerry Media are in hot water for allegedly using videos they did not have the rights for.

What Is Fyre Festival and Why Was It the Focus of a Documentary?

Fyre Festival was the brainchild of rapper Ja Rule and Billy McFarland, who was the CEO of Fyre Media. Fyre was intended as an app for booking celebrity talent, and the 2017 festival was supposed to promote the app and bring the brand to the front of Instagram style celebrity. It would take place throughout two weekends and make itself a household name.

Unfortunately, despite great musical artists ready to perform and many social media influencers promoting the festivities, the event ended up being a fraudulent scheme. Instead of festival attendees, many of whom paid thousands of dollars and flew a great distance to attend the event, receiving luxury accommodations and food/drink; they arrived at chips, sandwiches, and FEMA tents for sleeping.

While Ja Rule insisted that he was unaware of the fraud with investors and ticket holders, McFarland pled guilty in a 2018 court and was sentenced to 6 years in prison and a personal financial loss of $26 million. This travesty in the festival world became the subject of Netflix’s, “Fyre: The Greatest Party That Never Happened” documentary and one called, “Fyre Fraud”, by Hulu.

Who Is Suing Netflix and Jerry Media: The Allegations!

In August 2019, Nicole Pinedo filed in a New York federal court alleging that Jerry Media and Netflix used 3 of her videos in their film. The videos they selected helped them to document the experience of those who attended the event.

According to multiple online sources, some attendees even paid up to 250K for the flimsy tents, sparse food, and non-existent music at the festival. Pinedo is a filmmaker from Washington, DC, who also is in charge of a production company.

Naturally, she was concerned about being adequately credited and compensated for her work and took action. According to her allegations, the videos used without her permission show Ja Rule and McFarland’s prior (Magnises) company’s footage.

Pinedo’s claim of copyright infringement state that Netflix and Jerry Media did not get permission or consent to use her work. Not only does Pinedo seek damages, but she also wants the videos removed from their film, through injunctive relief.

Other Copyright Claims

That is not the only claim that has been alleged against Netflix and Jerry Media. A festival attendee named Clarissa Cardenas has also said that neither company asked her permission to use her video from the music festival.

Will Netflix and Jerry Media claim that they were entitled to use the video(s) and tell the court that their use of the news footage was allowable under fair use laws? Fair use gives limited use of copyrighted material if it meets specific provisions.

Or, do you feel that the film’s creators are at fault and should pay damages for the material they used without permission? Let us know in the comments.

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