Metallica's lawyer has warned fans about unauthorised concert footage set to go on sale, saying that the heavy metal group's "owns and controls" all its performances.
Bosses at Writers Group Film Corp. announced on Tuesday the acquisition of "several hours of unique Metallica 3D and 2D footage" for distribution.
But the Enter Sandman rockers have never heard of the firm, and their lawyer reveals the project doesn't have their seal of approval.
Metallica's attorney Peter Paterno said: "Metallica owns and controls its recorded performances and Creeping Death Music owns the vast majority of any music embodied in Metallica recordings."
"Pretty much any legitimate business would have contacted us to see how Metallica felt about it. Maybe these guys just forgot."
The situation echoes the band's long and bitter fight against attempts to use their music without permission, including a lawsuit against peer-to-peer music sharing software Napster for copyright infringement in 2000.
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