Source: Office of United States Attorneys
SAN JOSE – A federal grand jury has indicted Hank Risan on four counts of wire fraud stemming from alleged misrepresentations to investors about his software company and his purported music streaming service. Risan was arrested this morning and made his initial appearance today in federal court in San Jose.
According to the indictment filed on July 31, 2025, and unsealed today, Risan, 70, of Santa Cruz, allegedly offered and sold stock and stock conversion in his software company, Media Rights Technologies, Inc. (MRT), and his music streaming service, BlueBeat, Inc., to investors based on false representations, including: (1) false claims of BlueBeat’s copyright ownership of approximately 2.5 million songs by various well-known artists; (2) false and misleading comparisons and valuations of BlueBeat; (3) false claims of imminent acquisition of BlueBeat by a multi-national media and entertainment conglomerate; and (4) false claims of association and involvement with the companies by a former undersecretary of the U.S. Department of Commerce. As an example, on Nov. 3, 2020, Risan informed investors that he “received a very favorable comparable regarding the BlueBeat Catalog” and noted, “To put that news in perspective, BlueBeat contains approximately 2.5 million songs and $10K per song brings music to my ears. You can do the math!”
In reality, the indictment alleges, BlueBeat did not own the copyrights to the 2.5 million songs, the valuations of MRT and BlueBeat were fictional, the advertised multi-media conglomerate was not in the process of acquiring BlueBeat or its catalog, and the former Commerce official was not involved with BlueBeat.
Risan allegedly induced investors to purchase approximately $1,959,187 in stock and stock conversions, and to make payments characterized as “loans.” In total, he obtained approximately $3,165,859 from the charged scheme. Risan allegedly used the fraudulently obtained funds to pay personal credit cards, purchase collectables, and make mortgage payments on his personal residence.
United States Attorney Craig H. Missakian and FBI Special Agent in Charge Sanjay Virmani made the announcement.
Risan was released on a $100,000 unsecured bond. He is next scheduled to appear in district court on Oct. 8, 2025, for a status conference before U.S. District Judge P. Casey Pitts.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000 for each count of wire fraud in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1343. Any sentence following conviction would be imposed by the court after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew Chang and Jeff Nedrow are prosecuting the case with the assistance of Natachiana Burney and Susan Kreider. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the FBI.