Panayiotou v Sony Music Entertainment (UK) Ltd the copyright to Sony for many years, leaving him no control over how the music would be marketed nor placing a reciprocal requirement that the label invest in promotion. Had the case succeeded, it might have curtailed the practice of signing artists to multi-album contracts. The court wholly rejected the claims. Georgios Panayiotou, known professionally as George Michael, signed with Innervision Records in 1982 at the age of eighteen as part of the then relatively unknown pop duo Wham!. Innervision were distributed by CBS Records. In 1984 this contract was nullified as part of a legal compromise wherein Wham! were
Panayiotou v Sony Music Entertainment (UK) Ltd on 30 October 1992, and Justice Jonathan Parker issued a ruling on 1 June 1994. The plaintiff's claims were wholly rejected. Parker held that Michael's contracts were reasonable and fair, especially in consideration of his access to expert legal advice, several renegotiations, and terms comparable to the industry standard for an artist of his commercial success. There were five prongs to the justice's dismissal: In July 1995, Sony sold the contract to rival record companies Virgin Records and DreamWorks Records. Panayiotou v Sony Music Entertainment (UK) Ltd Panayiotou and others v Sony Music Entertainment (UK) Ltd. ([1994] ChD 142) was