Despite the fact that Copywrite infringement and bootleg cases go on throughout the western world pretty much every day; this particular case regarding Eric Clapton and a 55-year-old woman in Germany has carried quite a lot of momentum. The unnamed woman has been very firmly placed on thin ice after she tried to sell a €9.95, roughly £8.42, CD titled Eric Clapton – Live USA on eBay, she was then on the hook for legal fees of about €3,400, or £2,875. The most interesting part, she didn’t even sell it. The fees were to cover the legal costs from Clapton’s team trying to get the CD taken from the site.
After believing that her late husband bought the CD way back in the 80’s she claims her actions weren’t malicious. But once Clapton’s team found the listing online; they immediately jumped into action informing her of its illegal status. To which the woman responded, “I object and ask you not to harass or contact me any further”, and “feel free to file a lawsuit if you insist on the demands”. So, they did. An injunction was opened that Clapton inevitably won; the woman unsuccessfully appealed following the result and was ordered to cover the costs of the process.
This, in conjunction with Clapton’s recent anti-vaccination and lockdown views, has really turned him into a bit of a villain in the eyes of the public. His justification for the legal action wasn’t just to impose the David and Goliath vibe that he seems to be carrying, but instead to protect us (the listeners) from “poor-quality illegal bootleg CDs”. We should be grateful, and of course, the incurring fees weren’t his fault either; “This case could have been disposed of quickly at minimal cost, but unfortunately in response to the German lawyers’ first standard letter, the individual’s reply included the line (translation): “feel free to file a lawsuit if you insist on the demands”. This triggered the next step in the standard legal procedures, and the Court then made the initial injunction order.”. Poor Eric had no choice…
The social media storm has already forced old Slowhand to get defensive and release this statement. As well as this, he decided to waive the fees altogether. Claiming, “it was clear the individual is not the type of person Eric Clapton, or his record company, wish to target, Eric Clapton decided not to take any further action and does not intend to collect the costs awarded to him by the Court.”
See below one of Clapton’s most recent projects. An entire song about how he’s being personally oppressed by COVID-19 lockdowns.
