Two music-publishing companies—not Eminem personally as a named plaintiff—sued Meta in May 2025, alleging that Meta used 243 musical compositions without permission across Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp. A June 2026 court order allowed the publishers’ direct copyright-infringement claim to proceed but dismissed three other legal theories. The judge did not rule that Meta infringed the copyrights or award damages.
Who sued Meta, and what does Eminem have to do with the case?
The plaintiffs are Eight Mile Style, LLC and Martin Affiliated, LLC, music-publishing entities that say they own or control the compositions at issue. Eminem, whose legal name is Marshall Mathers, recorded many of the works, but he is not named as a plaintiff in the case caption. The case is Eight Mile Style, LLC et al. v. Meta Platforms, Inc. et al., No. 2:25-cv-11618, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.
The publishers filed suit on May 30, 2025, against Meta Platforms, Inc., Instagram, LLC and WhatsApp, LLC. The complaint alleges willful copyright infringement involving 243 musical compositions. Those are the plaintiffs’ allegations, not findings established after trial. The filed complaint identifies the works and platforms in dispute.
What do the publishers allege Meta did?
The complaint alleges that Meta reproduced and stored copies of the compositions in music libraries used by Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, then made the music available through platform features. It points to tools and formats including Stories, Reels, Original Audio and Reels Remix. The publishers say licensing discussions, including contact with the agency Audiam and direct talks with Eight Mile Style, did not produce a license. The court’s opinion notes that Meta disputed aspects of the plaintiffs’ account about Audiam’s relationship to them; the licensing history has not been adjudicated as a fact.
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The key legal distinction is between alleged copying by Meta itself and alleged responsibility for what platform users did. The judge evaluated whether the pleaded claims could proceed, not whether the alleged conduct was ultimately proven.
What did the judge decide?
On June 16, 2026, U.S. District Judge Brandy R. McMillion allowed the direct-infringement claim to proceed. The court concluded that the allegation that Meta reproduced and stored the compositions in its music libraries was sufficient at this stage. It rejected Meta’s argument that the complaint needed more specific allegations about each work before the case could continue. This is a ruling on the sufficiency of the complaint—not a finding of infringement or a prediction that the publishers will win. The June 16, 2026 opinion and order sets out the court’s reasoning.
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Claims that remain
- Direct copyright infringement: Allowed to proceed based on the allegation that Meta itself reproduced and stored the compositions.
Claims the court dismissed
- Inducement: Dismissed; the court also treated inducement as not a separate standalone claim.
- Contributory infringement: Dismissed because the complaint lacked specific facts about infringing acts by users. The judge would not equate encouraging people to use platform tools with encouraging infringement when those tools can be used lawfully.
- Vicarious infringement: Dismissed because the alleged direct financial benefit was not sufficiently connected to the compositions.
As Judge McMillion put it: “And while Meta may encourage its users to use the platforms’ tools, the Court is unwilling to equate an encouragement to use the tools with an encouragement to infringe, especially when the tools can be used in a non-infringing way.”
How much money is the lawsuit seeking?
The complaint requests actual damages and other remedies or, alternatively, statutory damages of up to $150,000 per work for 243 works across three platforms. The complaint’s arithmetic for that maximum is $109.35 million. That is the plaintiffs’ requested maximum calculation—not a court award, settlement, valuation of the case or finding that Meta is liable. The amount ultimately available, if any, would depend on the case and applicable law.
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What happens next in the case?
The June 16, 2026 order directed Meta to answer the surviving claim by July 7, 2026. Later docket activity—including whether an answer, scheduling order, amendment or further ruling followed that deadline—has not been verified here. The order therefore establishes that the direct claim was allowed to proceed and an answer deadline was set, but it does not establish the case’s present schedule or outcome.
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