Jax Radio: Judge Rejects Renda Bid To Toss Copyright Lawsuit

Renda Broadcasting has lost a bid to have a lawsuit started by Nielsen (when it was Arbitron) tossed.

A Federal Judge rejected a motion by Renda and the $650,000 lawsuit for alleged copyright violations in Jacksonville.

According to Judge Marcia Morales Howard, “Arbitron has sufficiently stated a claim.”

She noted the bar is set pretty low for a copyright infringement lawsuit...all that’s needed is proof from that the plaintiff that it owns a valid copyright. Arbitron filed suit June 2013, alleging that on “numerous occasions” between May 2011 and at least December 2012, Renda violated its copyright when Jacksonville general manager Bill Reese received ratings from a “longtime friend and business associate” at a local advertising agency. Identity of the ad agency has not been released.

Renda had previously subscribed to the Jacksonville data from 2008-2010.

Meanwhile, the court last month appointed a mediator to work with Renda and Nielsen, which bought Arbitron last fall.