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A Brazilian judge has ordered a song by British pop superstar Adele, "Million Years Ago," to be pulled from worldwide market, including streaming, over an ongoing plagiarism claim by a Brazilian songwriter.
The court order threatens the Brazilian subsidiaries of Sony and Universal, Adele's labels, with an $8,000 fine.
Music companies, however, can still appeal the decision.
The order was issued by Judge Victor Torres on Friday, at Rio de Janeiro's Sixth Commercial Court, pending further activity in the ongoing plagiarism case.
His preliminary injunction, reported Monday by AFP, orders Sony and Universal to "immediately and globally prohibit the use, reproduction, editing, distribution or commercialization of the song Million Years Ago, by any mode, means, physical or digital support, transmission or sharing platform”.
"It is a benchmark for Brazilian music, which ... has often been copied to compose successful international hits," Fredimio Trotta, the lawyer for Brazilian composer Toninho Geraes, who filed the plagiarism complaint, told AFP.
Trotta said his firm this week will work to ensure radio and television broadcasters, and streaming services around the world, are on 'alert' about the Brazilian decision.
His client Geraes claims that Adele's 2015 song plagiarized the music of his samba classic Mulheres (Women), recorded by Brazilian singer Martinho da Vila on a 1995 hit album.
Geraes is suing for lost royalties, $160,000 in punitive damages, plus songwriting credits on Adele's song.
Sony Brazil said it "does not have a statement at this time," while Universal Music Brazil did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Trotta said the order should have a chilling effect on foreign singers and labels seeking to remove Brazilian tunes.
"International producers and artists who have Brazilian music 'on their radar' for possible parasitic use will think twice, given this decision," the lawyer said.
Adele was also accused by Turkish music fans of plagiarism on Million Years Ago in 2015. They claimed that its melody was similar to that of a 1985 song by a Kurdish singer, Ahmet Kaya, called Acilara Tutunmak (Stuck after pain).
Kaya died in exile in France in 2000 and his widow said it was unlikely that a global star like Adele would do such a thing.
Brazil is a signatory to the Berne Convention of 1886, which accords international protection to copyrighted works.
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