There's just a couple of days left before Sonic the Hedgehog 3 premieres in theaters. One part of the movie that fans have been looking forward to is the appearance of "Live and Learn", the very popular theme song of Sonic Adventure 2, which originally released in 2001. The song was done by Crush 40, who are Jun Senoue and Johnny Gioeli.
Unfortunately, the latter isn't thrilled with SEGA's recent actions. In fact, Gioeli has sued SEGA of America for breach of contract, saying that SEGA's rights to the song only involve the lyrics. Gioeli says that he's the owner of the "master recording and composition" of the song. Because of this, Gioeli claims that SEGA doesn't have the correct licenses to use the song, meaning that SEGA hasn't compensated him for the song's usage in at least 25 different games over the years.
So, why is Gioeli suing now? Gioeli says in the lawsuit that he simply wasn't aware that SEGA was doing this. He was told that the song would be used in Sonic Adventure 2 and nowhere else. It wasn't until this year that he learned through a fan that the song has been getting used in many other games, such as Yakuza 4 and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.
Gioeli is asking the court to determine who is the owner of the masters, followed by compensation he wants for lost fees he would have gotten from SEGA for licensing the song. Gioeli's lawyer says that, should there be a ruling for a breach of contract, damages could reach up to $500,000. There could also be another $500,000 for restitution for unpaid royalties.
Gioeli later gave a statement to Polygon, saying that "I have no comment other than my desire to maintain the preservation of a long standing beautiful relationship with Sega. I do not want fans to draw conclusions or be disrupted from the beautiful memories we have made collectively with this music. I believe and hope we will come to a peaceful settlement that will be fair and just". As for the upcoming Sonic movie, Gioeli already confirmed in February that he and Paramount reached a deal, and that "Paramount now has the legal right to use 'Live and Learn' in any manner they feel necessary". So, the lawsuit is strictly related to SEGA and their usage of the song in video games.
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