The Jamaican and Ethiopian flags form a colourful backdrop to the statue of reggae icon, Bob Marley, on Arthur Wint Drive, St. Andrew. -Norman Grindley/Deputy Chief Photographer

NEW YORK (CMC):

The licensing dispute between the estate of the late international reggae superstar Bob Marley and the United States Universal Music Group has taken an "ugly turn".

At issue is an agreement struck last month for Verizon Wireless, the giant United States (U.S.) telecommunications giant, to become the exclusive provider of ringtones from the catalogue of Jamaican-born Marley, who died in 1981. Universal, a subsidiary of the U.S. conglomerate, Vivendi, owns the rights to the music.

In a statement issued here, Marley's family promptly objected to the deal, calling it tantamount to an endorsement and saying that it required their approval. The family threatened to sue to block the arrangement.

After Verizon Wireless appeared Thursday to have removed itself from the dispute, the Marley family said it would not follow through with plans to file a suit against the carrier for trademark infringement.

The family said Verizon had "ceded" to its demands and taken most of the 44 ringtones by the singer off the Verizon Wireless website.

Sixteen ringtones remained on the site, songs from early in Marley's career that are owned by companies other than Universal.

But in announcing that Verizon had changed course, the family was less than conciliatory.

No respect

Chris Blackwell, the British-based long-time spokesman for the family, said in a statement Friday that he was "infuriated that Verizon would go around the estate and initiate partnership with Universal".

He said it was "disturbing that these companies refuse to give the musicians the respect they deserve".

Blackwell, 70, the founder of Island Records, is credited with exposing Marley, who died of cancer at the age of 36, to an international audience.

He sold Island Records to Polygram Records, which was eventually bought by Seagram and merged into Universal.

James Gerace, a Verizon spokesman, said the company was "a little taken aback" by the Marley family statement.

"We had earlier this week decided to take the content down temporarily to give the Marley estate and Universal time to work out their differences," he said.

"Now, in light of that statement, we'll be putting that content back up," he added.

Backwell retorted that the suit with Verizon was back on "because they went back on their word".

In further complicating matters, Universal announced that Verizon, which initially trumpeted that it was the exclusive provider of the Marley ringtones, would soon be joined by "all phone carriers".

Blackwell said Universal would be named in yet another suit, to be filed within a couple of weeks.

He said the family remained "livid" with the label, which they maintain circumvented them in its deal with Verizon.

"It was basically a subterfuge action," Blackwell said. "It is Universal who really are the major criminals in this thing because they actually licensed the songs without our permission."

Universal said it was disappointed that "the Marley estate has chosen to take such an extreme and meritless position that a customary promotional campaign highlighting the availability of Marley mastertones somehow constitutes an 'endorsement' of Verizon over all."

Verizon said the Marley ringtones have been downloaded more than 30,000 times in less than two weeks.

Among the downloaded ringtones that Verizon removed, but is now offering again, is Marley's One Love/People Get Ready, which was voted the song of the last millennium.