Williams, Thicke Must Pay $5M for ‘Blurred Lines’ (Corrected)

Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams will have to hand over a total of $5 million for using part of a Marvin Gaye song in their 2013 hit “Blurred Lines,” a federal judge has ruled.

The judgment by the U.S. District Court for Central California ends a high-profile copyright case that tested the boundary between influence and infringement. Thicke and Williams argued the two songs didn’t share a melody or lyrics. A jury and an appeals court found enough similarities in phrases, hooks, bass lines, harmonic structures, keyboard chords and vocal melodies.

Thicke, Williams and record label More Water From Nazareth ...