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Singer Sophie B. Hawkins Wins Claim in Piracy Case

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Pop star Sophie B. Hawkins found a low-tech way to join the recording industry's ongoing war against music piracy on Tuesday, winning a small claims judgment against a man who she says was selling pirated copies of her album on eBay.

The Grammy-nominated artist won a $346 small claims judgment against the eBay merchant who sold promotional copies of her new CD "Wilderness," which is not due in record stores until next week.

Hawkins, who scored on Billboard's Music Survey with the hit singles "As I Lay Me Down" in 1992 and "Damn I Wish I Was Your Lover" in 1994 told Reuters in an interview that money was not the motivation for taking the matter to court in Santa Monica, California.

"Wilderness" is the first album released by her Trumpet Swan Records label, and like any recording mogul, Hawkins felt compelled to protect her intellectual property. She created the album, including the newly released track "Beautiful Girl," from her home studio in Venice, California.

"He was just making easy money off something that's my blood and guts," Hawkins said. "I had invested all of my life savings into this record and he wouldn't stop. He pissed me off."

Hawkins added that, unlike major record labels that sometimes sue the very fans they are trying to sell records to, the eBay seller was purely in it for the money and taking advantage of her fans.

"I want to thank my fans because they really protected me when this started happening," she said. "They are the ones who got ripped off. One person had to pay $300 for a ("Wilderness") CD that didn't even have the artwork."

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Roberta Kyman ruled in Hawkins' favor on Tuesday after the eBay seller failed to show up in court, a court clerk said.

Hawkins said she planned to return the money to fans who bought the CDs on eBay, then buy them authorized copies of "Wilderness" after it is released on April 20.

The singer first learned from fans in December that a promotional copy of the CD was listed on eBay for $300, and that additional copies were being sold.

EBay shut down the online auction of the CDs after she alerted the company that the copies were not intended for sale. The seller contacted buyers independently and sold two more copies for $12 each, even after receiving a warning from her attorneys, she said.