VIDEO: CBS SUNDAY MORNING Discusses Musical Plagiarism Lawsuits

CBS Sunday Morning correspondent David Pogue discussed the controversial topic of music copyrights and lawsuits this morning, Sunday, April 3rd. Talking with reputable lawyers on both sides of the argument, Pogue unpacks the criteria for suing for musical theft, which include ownership, access, and similarity. In an effort to discover whether these cases should be clarified as copyright infringement, some of the most famous cases surrounding this matter are brought into the spotlight.

The first major case of this kind involved The Chiffons suing George Harrison for copying their song, "He's So Fine" (1963), for his own release, "My Sweet Lord" (1970). Harrison lost and paid a large sum to the band, launching a number of other music copyright lawsuits.

Pogue talks about the ambiguity involved in these trials, stating, "The thing is, when you write a song, you only have a certain number of notes to choose from. And most songs use only a few chords. So, inevitably, sooner or later, two people are going to write sections of songs that sound alike. Should there even be lawsuits like this?"

More recent cases include Article Sound System taking pop sensation Dua Lipa to court for stealing from their "Live Your Life" for her chart topping "Levitating," Collage's "Young Girls" versus "Uptown Funk" by Bruno Mars, and Harrington and Leonard versus Ed SHeeran for his hit, "Photograph.

Watch the full segment below!

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