By Todd Spangler, Variety
Michelle Phan, who runs one of the top fashion and beauty channels on YouTube, countersued electronic-dance music company Ultra Records, which had accused the digital star of illegally using songs of its artists in her videos.
Michelle Phan (Photo by Jesse Grant/SAs 2014/Getty Images for DCP)
According to Phan’s counterclaim, filed Thursday, she had indeed received authorization from one of Ultra’s managers to use the songs in question — dating back to 2009 — and that the label granted the permission in order to promote digital sales of the music on Apple’s iTunes. Phan’s primary YouTube channel currently has nearly 7 million subscribers.
Phan’s suit seeks declaratory judgment that Ultra had issued a non-revocable license to the recordings and that her videos do not infringe on any Ultra copyright. In addition, she’s demanding unspecified monetary damages, accusing the record company of taking actions “with fraud, oppression and malice.”
In July, Ultra Records and Ultra International Music Publishing sued Phan for copyright infringement, alleging she used songs from several of its artists, including Kaskade, in videos without permission.
A rep for New York-based Ultra Records did not respond to a request for comment on Phan’s countersuit.
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