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Marvin Gaye's Family Settles With Sony In "Blurred Lines" Suit

Lenny Kravitz, Grace Jones, Lauryn Hill, Lion Babe, Thundercat, SZA & More Rock The Afropunk Festival 2015 in Brooklyn, NY.

The family of Marvin Gaye has reached a settlement agreement with Sony/ATV in the "Blurred Lines" lawsuit. Though the copyright lawsuit has not ended, Sony has reached a settlement with the family that relieves the label of stress related to the ongoing litigation. Initial legal action was brought against the Gaye family by Robin Thicke, who was seeking confirmation that his smash-hit "Blurred Lines" was not an improper copy of Gaye's "Got To Give It Up." The Gaye family targeted Thicke and EMI April, which is owned by Sony/ATV, with a countersuit based upon what they alleged to be a breach of the publishing company's obligations to protect Marvin Gaye's catalog. The recent settlement agreement reportedly provides protection for Sony/ATV, so that they will no longer be forced to defend their impartiality with respect to any copyrights issued for Gaye or Thicke's respective works. Additionally, Sony/ATV is no longer responsible for addressing a conflict of interest based upon its 30 percent ownership of the music publishing market. According to a report by The Hollywood Reporter, however, there is one catch:

However, it won't completely finish the involvement of Sony/ATV in the lingering dispute between Thicke and Gaye's children. As discovery is pursued, and as the case pushes its way to a potential trial, Thicke's camp will likely want a jury to hear exactly why Sony concluded the songs were not substantially similar.

Read the full article at THR. Stay tuned for more details.