Back in the summer of this year, Genius, a website that hosts lyrics for a large number of songs, accused Google of stealing lyrics from its website to display in search results. While the search giant was quick to deny the allegations, it seems that Genius is moving forward with a lawsuit against Google, as reported by The Verge.
The suit was filed in Brooklyn, New York, and it accuses both Google and LyricFind, the partner company that provides lyrics to display in Google"s search results, of violating its terms of service. The company goes on to say that Google and LyricFind are profiting from "ten years and tens of millions of dollars" that Genius has invested into creating its database.
Genius is seeking $400 million from the two offending companies, as well as a permanent injunction against LyricFind to prevent it from appropriating the website"s content and licensing it to third parties. The complaint filing can be found here.
John Bergmayer, legal director for a consumer advocacy group called Public Knowledge, doesn"t believe that Genius" arguments are particularly strong, according to the report from The Verge. However, given the recent attention Google has been getting from regulators and lawmakers, the search giant may still have reasons to worry. An accusation like this could further tarnish public perception of the company, which has repeatedly been at the center of antitrust investigations.