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Merlin CEO Jeremy Sirota said “independent music is not raw material for tech companies to exploit without consent” before quitting to join AI music scraper-in-chief Suno

Producer who accused Karol G of beat-theft dismisses his lawsuit, adding “we were wrong”

Anna’s Archive rolls out the red carpet for robots - and asks them to “persuade” their humans to make donations

After a Live Nation lobbyist boasted he got antitrust chief sacked, US Senators ask if company has hired a “bevy of cozy MAGA friends”

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

Live Nation • 11 min read

Why did Live Nation delete a bombastic article written by its top lawyer attacking the DOJ?

Live Nation’s top lawyer Dan Wall wrote a rant about the DoJ’s big antitrust lawsuit against the company last week. It was published on Live Nation’s investor portal, only to be yanked down shortly after. Live Nation didn’t want people to see it - but why?…

Sam Taylor • 24 Feb 2026

Merlin • 4 min read

Merlin CEO Jeremy Sirota said “independent music is not raw material for tech companies to exploit without consent” before quitting to join AI music scraper-in-chief Suno

No more TED talks, daddy! Ex-Merlin CEO Jeremy Sirota has moved to the dark side and joined one of the very companies he railed against. Having defended Merlin members against the predations of big tech, Sirota has signed up as big cheese of all things commercial at music scraping slop factory Suno…

Sam Taylor • 24 Feb 2026

CMU Approved • 1 min read

🎧 Approved: Cinema Stereo

Nashville’s Cinema Stereo deal in widescreen rock that feels rooted rather than retro - big melodic instincts, 70s barnets, songs built to carry. New single 'So Sorry, My Dear' is all driving and open-hearted, complete with guitar solos built for being played on their knees…

Kaya Robertson • 24 Feb 2026

Brockwell Live • 3 min read

Lambeth Council set to rubberstamp Brockwell Live for 2026, despite best efforts of local NIMBYs

Lambeth Council will tomorrow decide whether to allow the Brockwell Live festivals to take place in Brockwell Park this summer. This year the events are going through a full planning permission process after local residents successfully challenged the way the council previously fast-tracked approval…

Chris Cooke • 23 Feb 2026

ProtonVPN • 2 min read

ProtonVPN says it shouldn’t have to cut off pirates - but fails to convince French courts

ProtonVPN has failed to convince a French court that it shouldn’t have to instigate web-blocks against sporty piracy sites because of legal and technical issues. The French ruling is important for the music industry, which is keen to force a wider range of internet companies to block piracy sites…

Chris Cooke • 23 Feb 2026

Horizon Future Leaders • 5 min read

🌅 Horizon Future Leaders - Lily Batten

This week, we caught up with Lily Batten, Senior PR Consultant and founder of an industry first PR subscription service I Heard You Club’s ‘PR Bestie’.…

Horizon Music Jobs • 23 Feb 2026

Karol G • 2 min read

Producer who accused Karol G of beat-theft dismisses his lawsuit, adding “we were wrong”

Last year reggaeton star Karol G was accused of ripping off another producer’s beat on her 2022 hit ‘Gatúbela’. That producer, Alfr3d Beats, said ‘Gatúbela’ was “a forgery”. But he’s now dropped his claims, saying files provided by Karol G show her track was recorded before he even posted his beat…

Chris Cooke • 20 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 Jessie Ware, Baby Keem, Kendrick Lamar, Momo Boyd, Genesis Owusu, Nori + Ella Boh…

Kaya Robertson • 20 Feb 2026

Live industry news including ticketing, venues, festivals and more • 2 min read

Behemoth and Michale Graves respond to shows being cancelled for (very different) political reasons

Death metal band Behemoth have said it is “deeply concerning” that they were forced to cancel a show in India because of threats made by religious groups in the country. Meanwhile Michale Graves has responded to having his UK shows cancelled, albeit because of his politics rather than his music…

Chris Cooke • 19 Feb 2026

CMU Approved • 1 min read

🎧 Approved: Knumears

Los Angeles screamo band Knumears pull in the classic hallmarks of the genre, and push it forward with the kind of conviction that only comes from actually loving the form. New single ‘My Name’ folds old-school 90s skramz intensity into a punchier modern hardcore edge…

Kaya Robertson • 19 Feb 2026

Live Nation • 3 min read

Judge says he won’t throw out Live Nation antitrust lawsuit - but will trim US government’s claims

The US judge overseeing the big antitrust litigation against Live Nation and Ticketmaster has declined to dismiss the case, though he has trimmed down the lawsuit, removing some of the legal claims in it. It now goes to trial next month, unless Live Nation can agree an out-of-court settlement first…

Chris Cooke • 19 Feb 2026

Live Nation • 2 min read

Will the US states keep up antitrust pressure on Live Nation if live giant’s MAGA mates force DoJ to settle?

Amid speculation that the US DoJ will settle its antitrust lawsuit with Live Nation, the state-level attorneys general also involved in the case will meet this week. If the DoJ does settle under pressure from Live Nation’s MAGA mates, the live giant’s critics hope state-level action will continue…

Chris Cooke • 18 Feb 2026

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