The music business explained: news, analysis, insights and jobs for music industry professionals

European Commission approves Universal’s $775 million Downtown acquisition - but did it ask the right questions?

Spotify is all in on AI, its best engineers haven't written a single line of code since December - and why that should worry the music industry

Adding “hot takes” to unlicensed music is not fair use, judge confirms in rockumentary copyright case

IMPALA report warns European music diversity will erode without intervention on ownership, market access and infrastructure

European Commission must tackle “coercive buy-out practices” when US video streamers commission music, says MEP

Charlie Puth got musician to provide vocals for ‘Furious 7’ track, then Warner cheated him out rights and royalties, says lawsuit

Music publishers file new Anthropic lawsuit, adding in piracy claims and $3 billion mega-damages

Meta dropped songs from Reels library to bully Wixen into accepting lower royalty rates, says lawsuit

Horizon Future Leaders: Four issues shaping the industry

Five key developments over the Christmas break

Music and AI: 2025’s developments that will shape 2026’s disputes

Artists from South East Europe at risk of “cultural erasure” as a result of Spotify’s 1000 stream threshold

As indie community calls again for Universal’s Downtown deal to be blocked, will UMG flog off Curve to get over regulators?

MIT study “marks a new anchor for meaningful actions” to make live music more environmentally sustainable

Indie publishers make demands of collecting societies as they start to negotiate AI deals

Bob Vylan sue RTÉ over claims they instigated “antisemitic chant” during Glastonbury set

After King Gizzard boycotted Spotify, tracks by an AI-clone of the band started streaming

Ador founder wants to develop alternative K-pop management model with new agency

Indie publisher trade body says members should reject AI deals that do not value songs properly

“Creators are collateral damage” in AI race says Jorja Smith’s label, after AI voice clone track goes viral

Kneecap sue MP who “lied to the world” about group’s Canada ban

Johnny Cash estate uses ELVIS Act to sue Coke over tribute act ad soundtrack

Suno picks up Songkick as part of AI licensing deal with Warner Music

Live Nation and AEG provide a “disgusting service”, says Olivia Dean, after for-profit touting of tickets

Fugee Pras Michel jailed for fourteen years after illegal lobbying

Ticket touting platforms start frantic lobbying campaign claiming new anti-tout laws will increase ticket fraud

StubHub share price craters as UK prepares to announce ticket touting ban

Regulators must consider UMG’s AI deals in Downtown case, says IAO President

North American songwriter groups join call for transparency and creator consent as music companies start signing AI deals

Starmer must “honour his pledge” to cap prices in “extortionate and pernicious” secondary ticketing market

Downtown accused of planning “calculated destruction” of a short-lived YouTube music client in bombastic new lawsuit

No “self-service buffet” for AI companies says GEMA CEO as OpenAI loses landmark lyrics lawsuit

Manchester Evening News pays damages after incorrectly labelling Bob Vylan’s “sun salutation” as a Nazi salute

Slipknot.com owner hires domain name specialist to fight back against band’s cybersquatting claims

“Misleading rhetoric and “deceitful buzzwords” not good enough, says Council Of Music Makers in call for creator consent, control and compensation in AI deals

Axing of controversial EBacc is a “step in the right direction” for music education says Ed Sheeran

Former Guns N Roses manager sues band over autobiography blocker clause

Judgement in Getty’s UK lawsuit against Stability “underscores growing gap” between copyright and tech, says leading lawyer

Spotify’s streaming fraud initiatives are “nothing more than window dressing” says rapper RBX as he files class action lawsuit

Streaming services don’t want French language quotas in Québec

Universal has settled its lawsuit with Udio, and signed AI deals with Udio and Stability

Spotify questions MLC’s “motivations” in pursuing audiobook bundling dispute lawsuit

Lizzo is being sued over an uncleared sample - on a track she never released

Viagogo is unfair, opaque and violates EU law, consumer group tells regulator

Bobby Vylan says he has no regrets about “death to the IDF” chant at Glastonbury

Ticketmaster says FTC allegations it colluded with touts “nonsensical”, but it is changing some of its rules and shutting down TradeDesk

New Udio lawsuit hones in on the “significant and unequal harm” inflicted on independent musicians by music AI

Majors tell US Supreme Court to ignore ISP’s doom and gloom predictions and uphold billion dollar piracy ruling

Drake vows to appeal after judge throws out defamation lawsuit against Universal

High profile songwriters express concern about PRS transparency, accuracy and admin costs

Anthropic’s own guardrails revive full copyright lawsuit from litigious music publishers

Suno tells court to reject stream-ripping “gambit” by major labels in AI legal battle

As indie labels ramp up campaign for EU to block the UMG x Downtown merger, a French music lawyer says concerns around data are “fantasy or paranoia”

As FT says major labels are close to “landmark” AI licensing deals, is a new battle royale going to kick off within the music industry?

No one seems to know if Kneecap are still banned from Canada - or whether they were ever actually banned at all

Don’t say gruesome twosome: Ek steps sideways at Spotify to make way for not one but two new CEOs

‘Something Inside’ songwriter goes legal over Tommy Robinson’s use of his anti-apartheid anthem

Donald Trump signs executive order “saving TikTok”

Tabloid claims that Dua Lipa sacked agent over Glasto Kneecap letter are “categorically false” and “deliberately inflammatory”

Major labels add piracy claims to Suno lawsuit after $1.5 billion Anthropic settlement

Live Nation colludes with ticket touts, says US government as it launches legal action

Cornwall Council will hold meeting about ‘safety risks’ of Bob Vylan’s August Boardmasters performance - even through there weren’t any

Spotify finally adds lossless audio to premium

Anthropic will pay authors $1.5 billion to settle AI copyright case

Universal’s Downtown deal must be blocked by regulators before “cultural diversity is weakened irreversibly” says Dutch indie label group president

As EU hits pause on UMG Downtown investigation after “parties fail to provide important info”, Downtown boss whines about “misinformation”

More upheaval at Warner Music as UK label chiefs will report directly to US execs

Yet another senior exec out at Warner Music as UK boss Tony Harlow quits

Billion dollar piracy win for majors “defies common law and common sense” says Cox

Court dismisses Dave Rowntree’s black box lawsuit against PRS

Supertramp songwriter must continue to share publishing royalties with bandmates, US appeals court concludes

FTC sues ticket touting business that claims it is endorsed by Ticketmaster

Drake’s claims are “farcical” says Lucian Grainge as defamation battle rumbles on

Drake wants to trawl through Papa Grainge’s emails in ‘Not Like Us’ libel battle

Sony sues Napster over $9.2 million in unpaid royalties

Spotify age-checks could result in accounts being deleted, but only if you’re twelve

Increasing number of artists join Spotify boycott over CEO’s AI weapon investments

If China blocks TikTok deal app will “go dark” says US Commerce Secretary, but hints deal “coming soon”

Blackstone bails on consortium bidding to buy TikTok US - will a deal still be done by September deadline?

Anthropic’s ‘fair use’ win in AI copyright case could turn into a trillion dollar loss

No copyright exception for AI training in European law, says new report

Full scale anticompetition investigation on the cards after UMG’s Virgin Music fails to allay EU fears over Downtown merger

Suno AI’s faulty guardrails mean its ‘ReMi’ lyric model will spit out entire lyrical works with basic prompting

Did Ticketmaster’s UK boss Andrew Parsons mislead MPs at a select committee hearing?

Trump must “weigh in” on AI copyright debate and pressure “less innovative countries” on copyright rules, says OpenAI

Everyone’s making loads of money but don’t point the finger at us if you’re not, says Spotify’s updated Loud & Clear

Andrew Tate course on ‘pimping’ and exploiting women remains on Spotify as petition passes 25,000 signatures

Universal will spend billions to dominate emerging markets, says Grainge during Q4 earnings call as major sets out its “eat the world” strategies

Liverpool “new heart of music business” says Sound City as major label execs and industry heavyweights head north

Live Nation boss dismissive of streaming platforms’ superfan ambitions as company reports record year

Spotify wants to be “the best in the world at building AI products” and is focused on “accelerated execution”... but still no super-premium launch

Judge throws out MLC’s audiobooks bundle lawsuit, says Spotify can keep cutting songwriter royalties through its “cynical trick”

Universal Music’s new Spotify deal could be a knock-out blow for streaming platform’s audiobook bundling trick

Universal put “corporate greed” before Drake’s safety, says defamation lawsuit filed over Kendrick Lamar diss track

Beware the “wolf under the cape” in Universal’s Downtown land grab, warns Beggars boss as IMPALA calls for regulators to block the deal

EU AI Act can only provide a “temporary fix” to the “darker aspect” of AI’s “profound disruption” to creative industries says open letter

AI generated music will suck €4 billion a year away from music creators by 2028 says CISAC

Village People founder loves Trump using YMCA, but hates people calling it a gay anthem

Executives from BMG, Absolute Label Services, Mahogany Music, Punch Records and more to join award winning female entrepreneurs in Liverpool as first Sound City+ 2025 speakers unveiled

AIF makes desperate call for government to “step up, and step up now” to get festivals through “devastating period”, as MVT launches new Liveline fund

Misogyny In Music • 2 min read

UK government must extend new NDA protections to freelancers to truly tackle misogyny in music, say MPs

Last year Parliament passed the Employment Rights Act which prohibits the use of NDAs to silence the victims of harassment and abuse in the workplace. MPs previously called for that protection to help tackle misogyny in music, but say that will only happen if the new rules also apply to freelancers…

Chris Cooke • 16 Feb 2026

Wasserman Music • 2 min read

Wasserman to sell his talent agency following artist anger over his appearance in the Epstein files

The owner and boss of Wasserman Music - Casey Wasserman - is standing down and selling the talent agency after emails he sent in 2003 appeared in the Epstein files. An increasing number of clients had called for Wasserman to go, with some - like Chappell Roan - quitting the agency in protest…

Chris Cooke • 16 Feb 2026

Horizon Future Leaders • 4 min read

🌅 Horizon Future Leaders - Fanny Vicherat

This week, we caught up with Fanny Vicherat, Head Of International Programs - Editorial & Marketing Partnerships at Believe.…

Horizon Music Jobs • 16 Feb 2026

Universal Music • 20 min read

European Commission approves Universal’s $775 million Downtown acquisition - but did it ask the right questions?

Universal’s “eat the world” deal to gobble up Downtown has been given the nod by European regulators - so long as it flogs off the Downtown-owned Curve royalty platform. But as the industry responds to today’s announcement, were Europe’s regulators even looking at the right things?…

Sam Taylor • 13 Feb 2026

Hybe • 2 min read

Ador founder wins legal battle over shareholder agreement with HYBE, which now needs to pay her $17.7 million

A court in South Korea has ruled in favour of Ador founder Min Hee-jin in one of her legal battles with the label’s owner, K-pop powerhouse HYBE. It tried to terminate a shareholder agreement with Min, but a court says that deal is still in force. As a result, HYBE will have to pay Min $17.7 million…

Chris Cooke • 13 Feb 2026

Big Machine • 2 min read

Scott Borchetta leaves HYBE and walks his Big Machine out with him

Scott Borchetta is leaving HYBE America, which ended up owning his Big Machine label group following a deal in 2021. HYBE will retain all the assets of the Big Machine company, but Borchetta has bought back the name, allowing him to set up an entirely new label using the Big Machine brand…

Chris Cooke • 13 Feb 2026

CMU Selects • 1 min read

CMU Selects - the last week’s standout releases

Our selection of five releases that cut through the noise this week, from James Blake, Angel Du$t, Tsatsami, Shy One, Moonlight + Lykke Li…

Kaya Robertson • 13 Feb 2026

Anna's Archive • 3 min read

Anna’s Archive ignores court order and starts making stolen Spotify files available to torrent

Last month a US court issued an injunction banning piracy activist group Anna’s Archive from making available any of the music files it grabbed when hacking the Spotify platform last year. Totally ignoring that court order, the piracy group is now enabling users to download about 2.8 million tracks…

Chris Cooke • 12 Feb 2026

Artificial Intelligence • 3 min read

Deadmau5 says new laws needed to “stop idiots from abusing AI” after appearing in deepfake promo video

As lawmakers in Washington continue to consider a new digital replica right to help performers protect their voice and likeness in the context of AI, Deadmau5 has hit out at a deepfake video in which he appeared to endorse another DJ. New laws are needed to “stop idiots from abusing AI”, he insists…

Chris Cooke • 12 Feb 2026

CMU Approved • 1 min read

🎧 Approved: Lowertown

Lowertown’s world has that charming lo-fi intimacy and Tumblr-born romanticism. New single ‘I Like You A Lot’ is a rare love song from the pair. Set to a spry drumbeat and tape-worn guitars, it details the physical sensations and mental spirals of infatuation…

Kaya Robertson • 12 Feb 2026

Spotify • 4 min read

Boycotts aren’t always an option for artists “beholden” to corporations that “prioritise profit over ethics”, Alexis Krauss explains

Alexis Krauss from Sleigh Bells has provided a frank explanation for why it’s tricky for many artists to boycott music companies whose practices may cause concern, like Spotify and Live Nation. The truth is, she says, “I find myself often beholden to corporations that prioritise profit over ethics”…

Chris Cooke • 11 Feb 2026

Spotify • 25 min read

Spotify is all in on AI, its best engineers haven't written a single line of code since December - and why that should worry the music industry

Forget ‘Heated Rivalry’ - Spotify's new CEO is in love with a model called Claude - and the music industry needs to sit up and pay attention. As Spotify goes all in on AI, and suggests 100% AI music is OK, where does that leave music and Lucian Grainge’s superfan opportunity?…

Sam Taylor • 11 Feb 2026