Chris Cooke - CMU | the music business explained (Page 5)

Industry welcomes ten step plan for “rebalancing the licensing regime” of UK festivals and venues

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

Industry welcomes ten step plan for “rebalancing the licensing regime” of UK festivals and venues

The UK government has published ten recommendations from an industry taskforce that was asked to review how pubs, clubs, venues and events are licensed, 20 years on from the last Licensing Act. The music industry says the recommendations include many “positive, business friendly measures”…

Chris Cooke • 01 Aug 2025

YouTube now the second most watched media platform in the UK, behind only the BBC

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YouTube • 3 min read

YouTube now the second most watched media platform in the UK, behind only the BBC

YouTube is now second only to the BBC when it comes to at-home video consumption, according to a new report from OfCom. The regulator considers what that means for traditional public service broadcasters like the BBC, having recently suggested new laws to force YouTube to sign-post their content…

Chris Cooke • 31 Jul 2025

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

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Spotify • 3 min read

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

Last week age-check requirements contained in the UK’s Online Safety Act went into force, meaning platforms must check a user’s age before they access content that is deemed harmful to children. That includes Spotify, where new age-check rules led to fears some users might see their accounts deleted…

Chris Cooke • 31 Jul 2025

Implementation of EU AI Act “solely benefits” AI companies say creator groups who demand a complete rethink

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Artificial Intelligence • 2 min read

Implementation of EU AI Act “solely benefits” AI companies say creator groups who demand a complete rethink

The European Commission has now published various documents setting out how AI companies should comply with copyright and transparency obligations in the EU AI Act. However, creator groups say their concerns were ignored when those documents were being compiled and they should therefore be rewritten…

Chris Cooke • 30 Jul 2025

Judge rules against Royal Albert Hall seat owners in dispute over the venue’s slightly bizarre seat ownership system

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Royal Albert Hall • 3 min read

Judge rules against Royal Albert Hall seat owners in dispute over the venue’s slightly bizarre seat ownership system

1250 seats at London’s Royal Albert Hall are owned by third parties who control access to those seats, although the venue can exclude the seat owners from a set number of shows per year. The Hall was sued for doing that too often, but a judge has declined to rule against the venue’s management…

Chris Cooke • 30 Jul 2025

As FTC begins crack down on ticket scalping, scalpers say Ticketmaster endorses their practices

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Secondary Ticketing • 4 min read

As FTC begins crack down on ticket scalping, scalpers say Ticketmaster endorses their practices

The FTC in the US has started to crackdown on ticket scalpers that it reckons have violated the BOTS Act, which prohibits certain practices for sourcing tickets for resale. But one targeted scalping company says its ticket sourcing practices are not only lawful but also authorised by Ticketmaster…

Chris Cooke • 29 Jul 2025

HYBE’s headquarters raided twice in one week as legal issues spiral

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Hybe • 2 min read

HYBE’s headquarters raided twice in one week as legal issues spiral

The Seoul HQ of K-pop company HYBE has been raided twice in the last week, first by officials investigating fraud allegations against founder Bang Si-hyuk and then today by tax inspectors. Both raids relate to allegations of misconduct around HYBE’s 2020 initial public offering…

Chris Cooke • 29 Jul 2025

UK government says it will ramp up ‘agent of change’ as it seeks to simplify the licensing of night-time businesses

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Live industry news including ticketing, venues, festivals and more • 3 min read

UK government says it will ramp up ‘agent of change’ as it seeks to simplify the licensing of night-time businesses

The UK government has published a Plan For Change that aims to simplify the licensing of bars, clubs and music venues. It includes ramping up the ‘agent of change’ principle, which was added to planning guidelines in 2018, but the industry says those guidelines have been too open to interpretation…

Chris Cooke • 28 Jul 2025

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

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Spotify • 3 min read

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

Last month it emerged that Spotify boss Daniel Ek had put more money into - and was now Chair of - AI defence tech company Helsing. That has prompted criticism from a number of artists, with King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard now joining Deerhoof in pulling their music from Spotify in protest…

Chris Cooke • 28 Jul 2025

Hungary Kneecap ban is “fucking outrageous” and has “no legal basis”, says band

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Kneecap • 3 min read

Hungary Kneecap ban is “fucking outrageous” and has “no legal basis”, says band

Hungary has banned Kneecap from entering the country ahead of a planned performance at Sziget Festival next month. The festival says the move by the Hungarian government is “unnecessary and regrettable”, while Kneecap have dubbed it “fucking outrageous”, insisting there is no legal basis for the ban…

Chris Cooke • 25 Jul 2025

‘Implied jokes licence’ no laughing matter says comedy lawyer in stand-up streaming stand off

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Pandora • 2 min read

‘Implied jokes licence’ no laughing matter says comedy lawyer in stand-up streaming stand off

A group of comedians sued Pandora for copyright infringement on the basis that, although it had permission to stream recordings of their performances, it never got licences covering their comedy material. But a judge who has reviewed the case says Pandora had an implied licence for all the jokes…

Chris Cooke • 25 Jul 2025

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

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TikTok • 2 min read

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

TikTok’s future in the US remains uncertain. Although Donald Trump has now postponed three times the deadline for ByteDance to sell the app in order to avoid a ban, his Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has said the sale must happen, and if China blocks the deal “TikTok is going to go dark”…

Chris Cooke • 25 Jul 2025