Chris Cooke - CMU | the music business explained (Page 17)

public

BMG • 2 min read

BMG in talks to buy Concord

BMG is reportedly in talks to buy Concord in a deal that could be worth $7 billion. The CEO of BMG owner Bertelsmann said the time might be right for the music company to “join forces with a competitor” nearly two years ago, and Concord was always on the relatively short list of possible partners…

Chris Cooke • 30 Jan 2026

Kid Rock tells lawmakers “resale price caps work”, so US should follow European lead on ticket touting

public

Secondary Ticketing • 2 min read

Kid Rock tells lawmakers “resale price caps work”, so US should follow European lead on ticket touting

Kid Rock yesterday testified in the US Senate at a session on ticketing, calling on American lawmakers to introduce a price-cap restricting how much touts can mark up the prices of tickets they sell. He told senators that such price-caps already exist in parts of Europe and they “seem to be working”…

Chris Cooke • 29 Jan 2026

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

public

Anthropic • 3 min read

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

Last year a US court declined to allow music publishers that are suing AI company Anthropic to add extra piracy claims to their lawsuit. Knowing those claims strengthen their case, given recent legal precedent, the publishers have now filed a brand new lawsuit, that also seeks $3 billion in damages…

Chris Cooke • 29 Jan 2026

Yet more K-pop legal drama as Ador founder hits back at contract tampering claims, and agency sues one of NewJeans

public

Hybe • 3 min read

Yet more K-pop legal drama as Ador founder hits back at contract tampering claims, and agency sues one of NewJeans

After trying to quit HYBE’s Ador label, K-pop group NewJeans last year agreed to carry on working with the company. But then the label announced it was axing and suing one member, while also accusing Ador founder Min Hee-jin of contract tampering, something she denied at a press conference today…

Chris Cooke • 28 Jan 2026

TikTok insists it’s not suppressing anti-Trump content now its US business is run by Trump allies

public

TikTok • 3 min read

TikTok insists it’s not suppressing anti-Trump content now its US business is run by Trump allies

There has been more speculation that TikTok is suppressing anti-Trump content, now that TikTok USA is controlled by Trump allies. California governor Gavin Newsom is even investigating. But TikTok says any problems publishing videos in recent days are the result of a power outage at a data centre…

Chris Cooke • 28 Jan 2026

Anti-Defamation League says Kanye’s apology doesn’t “undo long history of antisemitism”

public

Kanye West • 2 min read

Anti-Defamation League says Kanye’s apology doesn’t “undo long history of antisemitism”

Yesterday Kanye West took out an advert in the Wall Street Journal to share a lengthy apology for all his antisemitic statements and content in recent years. The ADL says the apology is long overdue, adding “the truest apology would be for him to not engage in antisemitic behaviour in the future”…

Chris Cooke • 27 Jan 2026

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

public

Meta • 2 min read

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

Wixen has accused Meta of employing “unscrupulous” tactics to pressure the publisher into accepting much lower royalty rates. It claims Meta removed Wixen songs from its Reels library and lied to the artists behind those tracks in a bid to put pressure on the publisher during licensing negotiations…

Chris Cooke • 27 Jan 2026

American TikTok users link technical issues to last week’s change in ownership

public

TikTok • 4 min read

American TikTok users link technical issues to last week’s change in ownership

There were technical issues on TikTok in the US this weekend following the change in ownership at TikTok USA last week. There has been much speculation that the issues and change in ownership were connected, adding to concerns about what having Trump allies in charge of TikTok in the US might mean…

Chris Cooke • 26 Jan 2026

Chad Hugo sues Pharrell Williams in dispute over Neptunes and NERD companies

public

Pharrell Williams • 3 min read

Chad Hugo sues Pharrell Williams in dispute over Neptunes and NERD companies

Chad Hugo has sued Pharrell Williams in a dispute over the running of two companies the Neptunes duo co-own. Williams manages the companies day-to-day and, Hugo claims, has failed to provide proper financial reporting and to pay him all the money he is due. Williams says the lawsuit is “premature”…

Chris Cooke • 26 Jan 2026

Hundreds of US creators tell big tech: “stealing isn’t innovation”

public

Artificial Intelligence • 2 min read

Hundreds of US creators tell big tech: “stealing isn’t innovation”

The Human Artistry Campaign has rallied hundreds of American creators to back a new declaration on AI. Noting that some tech firms are now licensing content when training AI models, rather than using existing works without permission, the declaration calls on the entire AI sector to follow that lead…

Chris Cooke • 23 Jan 2026

Dismissal of Drake’s ‘Not Like Us’ defamation claim sets “dangerous” precedent, says Drake

public

Drake • 2 min read

Dismissal of Drake’s ‘Not Like Us’ defamation claim sets “dangerous” precedent, says Drake

Drake has filed an appeal in his defamation legal battle with Universal Music over Kendrick Lamar’s ‘Not Like Us’. A judge dismissed Drake’s lawsuit last year concluding lyrics in a rap diss track do not constitute ‘statements of fact’. Drake’s lawyers argue that that has set a “dangerous” precedent…

Chris Cooke • 23 Jan 2026

Music industry sues Anna’s Archive over Spotify hack

public

Anna's Archive • 4 min read

Music industry sues Anna’s Archive over Spotify hack

Just before Christmas pirate activist group Anna’s Archive announced it had hacked Spotify and grabbed 86 million music files which it planned to make available in ‘bulk torrents’. Unsurprisingly, the majors and Spotify have gone legal, filing a lawsuit and getting the group’s .org domain blocked…

Chris Cooke • 22 Jan 2026