News Headlines

November 2002

Page 9

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• Baby Born to Backstreet Boy Brian Littrell and Wife Leighanne

• Backstreet Suit Claims Boys Were Bypassed In Favor Of Nick Carter

• Backstreet Boys Sue Zomba Seeking $100 Million

• Backstreet Boys Sue Zomba For $75 Million

• Baby Born to Backstreet Boy Brian Littrell and Wife Leighanne     back up
  Source: Business Wire
  
  NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 27, 2002--Backstreet Boy Brian Littrell and his wife Leighanne are the proud parents of a baby boy. 
  Baylee Thomas Wylee Littrell, 6 lbs., 7 oz., was born on Tuesday, November 26th, 2002 at 7:41 p.m. ET in Atlanta, GA. Baylee is the Littrell's first child. Both Mom and Baby are doing well. "God has blessed our family in so many ways, and we are proud and very excited to welcome our new healthy baby boy into the world," said the proud new parents Brian and Leighanne. 

• Backstreet Suit Claims Boys Were Bypassed In Favor Of Nick Carter      back up
  Source: LAUNCH 
  
  By: Darryl Morden, Los Angeles 
  The Backstreet Boys are suing Zomba Recording Corporation, the parent company of the group's label, Jive Records, claiming a fourth studio album was bypassed in favor of the solo project by group member Nick Carter. 
  Backstreet Boys Inc. (BBI) and Backstreet Productions, Inc., both of Delaware and conducting business in Los Angeles and New York, filed the lawsuit Monday (November 25) in U.S. District Court in New York. 
  The lawsuit accuses Zomba of not fulfilling a contractual obligation when the group was ready to deliver a new album in April 2002, and also refusing to pay advances due with the delivery of the album. 
  The group claims it attempted to consult with the company over a selection of songs and producers, but Zomba refused to participate and rejected "artistic decisions." In lieu of a fourth album from the group, the record company chose to develop, produce, and promote the solo recording of Backstreet member Carter, the lawsuit says. 
  The group also asserts it has sold 65 million albums worldwide and has received too little of the revenue from product sales. 
  The Backstreet Boys companies are asking for damages to proof at trial for at least $75 million, plus additional damages from breach of contract and wrongful conduct, as well as all court costs, attorney's fees, plus further relief as deemed proper by the court. 
  A statement issued by the group said: "We are committed to the Backstreet Boys, and we will protect our group from anybody or anything that tries to break us apart. We are disappointed that our longtime label Jive Records has attempted to irresponsibly exploit our group. The five of us are writing for our new CD and setting concert dates for our upcoming worldwide summer tour." 
  The lawsuit was filed in the name of all five Backstreet Boys: Kevin S. Richardson, Brian Thomas Littrell, Nick Carter, Howard Dorough, and Alexander J. "A.J." McLean, who state they met and formed the group in 1993. 
  Representatives for Zomba Recording Corporation have 20 days from the date of filing to respond to the lawsuit. The company was sold Tuesday (November 26) to German media conglomerate Bertelsmann AG (BMG) for $2.74 billion. 

• Backstreet Boys Sue Zomba Seeking $100 Million       back up
  Source: Reuters
  
  By: Sue Zeidler 
  LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The Backstreet Boys say they are the victim of boardroom politics and are fighting back with a $100 million lawsuit against their record label. 
  They have sued Zomba Music Group, saying the record label effectively barred the group from recording a new album because of a preoccupation with a now-completed merger with German media giant Bertelsmann AG. 
  A lawyer for the boy band, one of Zomba's biggest acts, said on Tuesday the group was seeking $75 million for violation of trademark, $5 million for a lost advance and at least $20 million in punitive damages in the lawsuit filed in federal court in Manhattan. 
  "They've been using the Backstreet Boys' trademark to shuttle traffic to other Web sites," Carla Christofferson, the band's lawyer said, adding that Zomba's right to use the trademark was limited to promoting records by the band. 
  Officials for both Zomba and Bertelsmann declined comment. 
  The lawsuit filed on Monday charges that Zomba had promised a $5 million advance to the group if they completed a fourth album by April 2002, with the full participation of all five band members. 
  But the suit said Zomba then made that deadline impossible by withholding approval of producers and songwriters. 
  "They were busy negotiating their deal with Bertelsmann and were not available at all. They were withholding approval rights and the band could not move forward," Christofferson said. 
  
  SOLO ALBUM 
  The lawsuit alleges that rather than release the fourth album, Zomba decided to produce and promote a solo album by one of the band members, Nick Carter. 
  "We are committed to the Backstreet Boys, and we will protect our group from anybody or anything that tries to break us apart," the band said in a statement on Tuesday. 
  "We are disappointed that our longtime label has attempted to irresponsibly exploit our group. The five of us are writing for our new CD and setting concert dates for our upcoming worldwide summer tour," the group said. 
  Between 1994 and 2001, the Backstreet Boys produced and released three albums through Zomba's Jive records, which sold more than 65 million copies, the lawsuit says. 
  "The success of the Backstreet Boy albums revitalized a musical genre and provided a springboard for Zomba and its label Jive records to capitalize on other popular artists who followed in its wake," the complaint says. 
  Earlier on Tuesday, Clive Calder, the press-shy mastermind behind such pop stars as the Backstreet Boys, Britney Spears and 'NSync, cashed out and walked away from his Zomba label in a $2.74 billion deal with German media giant Bertelsmann AG. 
  Bertelsmann said Calder was resigning as chairman and chief executive of the Zomba Music Group he founded in the 1970s but would remain in a part-time advisory role. 
  Zomba leaves behind its ranking as the world's biggest independent label as it moves under the umbrella of BMG, home to stars such as Christina Aguilera and the Foo Fighters and a catalog including Elvis Presley. 

• Backstreet Boys Sue Zomba For $75 Million      back up
  Source: Billboard.com
  
  By: Jonathan Cohen, N.Y. 
  The Backstreet Boys have filed a $75 million suit against Zomba Recording Corporation, the parent company of Jive Records. The suit, filed yesterday (Nov. 25) in New York District Court, alleges breach of contract, intentional interference with contract, trademark infringement, and unfair competition and seeks to void all stipulations remaining from the group's 1994 contract with Zomba. 
  According to the suit, the Backstreet Boys in November 1999 revised their 1994 contract and committed to releasing two further albums for Zomba. In exchange for delivering them on time as part of a pre-determined schedule, the group would receive multiple non-returnable payments that would serve as advances against future royalties. Included among these was a $5 million payment if the second album (the group's fourth overall) was delivered by April 30, 2002, and featured the participation of all five group members. 
  The suit says things went awry following the November 2000 release and subsequent tour in support of "Black and Blue," the first album under the revised contract. Once the Backstreet Boys were ready to begin work on their next release, Zomba "refused to actively participate in the selection of songs or producers and rejected, in bad faith, artistic suggestions made by [the group]." 
  Instead, Zomba turned its attentions to releasing a solo album by group member Nick Carter, making it "impossible for [the group] to deliver a fourth album to Zomba by April 30, 2002, or otherwise. Because of Zomba, Carter was unable and unwilling to participate in any of [the group's] production or recording efforts. Because of these insurmountable roadblocks, [the group] has yet to deliver to Zomba its fourth album." 
  The suit claims that Zomba forced Carter to "produce, release, and promote a solo album at the expense of his involvement with the band," making lucrative touring impossible and denying the Backstreet Boys' attempt to collect the $5 million payment. Further, the group claims Zomba is unlawfully using the Backstreet Boys' trademark to promote Carter's record. The set in question, "Now or Never," debuted earlier this month at No. 17 on The Billboard 200 and has sold 106,000 copies in the U.S., according to Nielsen SoundScan. 
  "We are committed to the Backstreet Boys, and we will protect our group from anybody or anything that tries to break us apart," the group said in a statement. "We are disappointed that our long time label Jive Records has attempted to irresponsibly exploit our group. The five of us are writing for our new CD and setting concert dates for our upcoming worldwide summer tour." Billboard.com understands the group may play some shows in conjunction with U.S. fairs. 
  A Zomba spokesperson said the company does not comment on pending litigation. 
  To date, the Backstreet Boys' three Jive studio albums have sold 27.4 million units in the U.S., according to Nielsen SoundScan. 

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