united-states copyright fair-use intellectual-property
Is it legal to republish lyrics?
<p>Can a lyrics web site be legal, assuming there are no special agreements with the artists?</p>

<p>Is publishing song lyrics considered "fair use?"</p>

<p>Generally, no - lyrics of a song are intellectual property, and the mere act of publishing them, especially if commercialised through advertisements, can be grounds for a claim of copyright infringement to be brought against the website operators.</p>

<p>For example, in 2012, <a href="http://law.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/california/cacdce/2:2009cv06160/452250/219/" rel="nofollow">a company that displayed websites without a license from the rightsholders was awarded $6.6 million</a> in statutory damages and legal costs.</p>

<p>As for whether it is fair use, it will depend on the precise circumstances. The mere publishing of the lyrics without license is unlikely to be considered fair use - in general, it must educate, or stimulate creativity.</p>
