- PleasrDAO has taken Martin Shkreli to court for an exclusive Wu-Tang Clan music album that Shkreli streamed on X spaces
- PleasrDAO bought the album for $4.7 million and is accusing Shkreli of keeping copies of the album
- The court has restricted Shkreli from selling or streaming the album until the case is determined
PleasrDAO has gone to court claiming that hedge fund owner Martin Shkreli caused harm and damages by an exclusive Wu-Tang Clan album, “Once Upon a Time in Shaolin,” on X spaces. The DAO said that it owns all the rights to the album which it purchased in 2021 for $4.75 million, adding that Shkreli “improperly retained copies” of the album causing “significant monetary and irreparable harm.” Although the court has already restricted Shkreli from interacting with the album, Shkreli has dismissed the lawsuit arguing that the DAO hasn’t involved its members before going to court.
Album’s Uniqueness Eroded
Shkreli bought the album for $2 million before it was confiscated by authorities after he was convicted of securities fraud. The DAO then bought the album in an auction in 2021. As it turns out, Shkreli had duplicated the album making it not one-of-a-kind as PleasrDAO had thought.
Famous jerk Martin Shkreli was sued for duplicating the “one-of-a-kind” Wu-Tang album that he sold for $4.75M pic.twitter.com/6wZzQRoLDz
— Rob Freund (@RobertFreundLaw) June 11, 2024
When issuing a restraining order, the court noted that Shkreli’s actions were likely to cause the “erosion of the Album’s uniqueness as an original work of art.”
The court also gave Shkreli up to June 25 to, among other things, “provide an inventory and account” of all the duplicated copies, the people he sent the copies to and profits made from them.
Dilemma for PleasrDAO
PleasrDAO disclosed that it’s in the process of releasing the album to the public “in a way that honors the Wu-Tang Clan.”
Our master plan is to release the music to the public in a way that honors the Wu-Tang Clan and gets them paid while circumventing the streaming oligopoly; every action we are taking is in service of that mission.
— ✨ Pleasr (@PleasrDAO) June 11, 2024
With Shkreli admitting to having duplicated and distributed copies of the album, providing information on who he sent the copies to and tracking profits may be a challenge, presenting a dilemma on what the DAO will do since what they have isn’t a one-of-a-kind album as they thought.
