Slim failure: Eminem loses Universal battle

Attempts by Eminem's producers to win half the royalties from download sales - through a court action against Universal - have failed; a court has rejected his demands.

FBT productions were looking to shift the standard 40% they get from physical sales to 50%. They argued that selling through iTunes and ringtones was a licensing deal; the judge agreed with Universal's view that a digital sale was the same as a CD sale and should be repaid at the same rate.

FBT are looking to appeal; in the meantime, the record labels will be delighted to have swerved what could have been a costly precedent.

It is funny, though: the RIAA insist all their battles for extra revenue from downloads is done to benefit the artists - and yet when the artists ask for some of the money, they end up having to go to court to have it argued why they can't get any.