The Associated Press reports that Apple may face legal action against The Society of Music Creators, Composers and Publishers, or Sacem.
The group alleges that Apple has refused to pay a fee levied in France on blank CDs, tapes, hard disks and other hardware used to copy music. Sales of Apple’s iPod are subject to this fee, according to the group. The money collected by this fee is distributed to musicians and other rights holders who lose money to piracy, according to the report.
Sacem said in a statement that unless Apple settles its debt, the agency that collects the fee will have to go to court “to make sure that the rights of artists, composers and producers are respected.”
The Associated Press estimates that this levy would net about $24.63 — or about €20 — for Apple’s 40GB iPod sold through a French department store. Sacem estimates Apple sold 20,000 iPods in France last year.