[3/26/07] The National Music Publishers’ Association (NMPA) filed a lawsuit against XM Satellite Radio for refusing to acknowledge the rights of or pay compensation to music publishers and songwriters for songs distributed through XM’s  digital download service, NMPA announced March 22.

The suit, filed in federal court in New York on behalf of Famous Music, Warner/Chappell, Sony/ATV and EMI, alleges that XM engages in copyright infringement through its subscription digital music download service, XM + MP3. The suit seeks a maximum of $150,000 in statutory damages for each work, and lists more than 175 songs as a “small fraction” of those being distributed through the service.

XM also is facing a suit from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) filed on behalf of record labels over the Pioneer Inno, claiming the portable device acts as a subscription service by allowing customers to both hear live music and record up to 50 hours of digital content.

In July, XM asked a federal judge to throw out that suit.