Snow Patrol v Far Right Austrian Party

Austria’s far right Freedom Party (FPOe) is being sued by British rock band Snow Patrol for the illegal use of one of their songs in an election campaign.

Universal Music, which represents the band, has launched legal action against the Freedom Party for using the song ‘Run’ without permission. It featured in a video which they used to front their campaign for the 2013 Austrian general election.

Universal Music claim their copyright has been breached by the right wing party leader Hans Christian Strache, who they say used elements of the track for a home-grown adaptation of the hit.

Universal Music claim the song is a copy of Snow Patrol’s best selling hit single from 2004 ‘Run’. The background music used by the Freedom Party has an uncanny resemblance to Snow Patrol’s hit, even if the lyrics were replaced by nationalistic words of the party.

Universal want Strache and the singer of the Austrian version of the song to be extradited to the USA for trial.

Strache took over as leader of the FPOe in 2005 after the late Joerg Haider, who had been the long term head of the far right party, left to set up an alternative political group.

Strache led the party into the national elections that took place last September where, with the help of their campaign song, they managed to secure 20.5 percent of the vote.