CMU | the music business explained (Page 10)

Chance The Rapper and Pat The Manager bust-up heads to court over disputed sunset clause

Warner Music’s Robert Kyncl is betting the company on an AI future. Can he deliver?

Suno is a feral pig rampaging through a well-tended garden, say creator orgs

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

Artificial Intelligence • 12 min read

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

AI will remain a major talking point in the music industry throughout 2026. Pretty much all the big copyright questions and disputes relating to generative AI remain unanswered and unresolved. However, as major labels sign a flurry of AI deals, future disputes are likely to be within the industry…

Chris Cooke • 12 Jan 2026

CMU Selects • 1 min read

CMU Selects - the last week’s standout releases

Our selection of five releases that cut through the noise last week, from A$AP Rocky, BIG SPECIAL, Slim Soledad, Clementaum, ELIZA + Samm Henshaw…

Kaya Robertson • 12 Jan 2026

CMU Approved • 1 min read

🎧 Approved: Sassy 009

Sassy 009 thrives in the in-between: a space where distorted vocals, grunge textures, shoegaze swells, 90s beatronica and gauzy hyperpop collide. On new single ‘Mirrors’, she links with Malaysian-Irish producer and singer yunè pinku for a reflective, downtempo shimmer…

Kaya Robertson • 16 Dec 2025

Spotify • 3 min read

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

A new study has put the spotlight on the 1000 stream royalty payment threshold introduced by Spotify last year, concluding that the change in rules disproportionately affects artists and labels in smaller markets like those in South East Europe, with 92% of surveyed indie labels opposing the changes…

Chris Cooke • 16 Dec 2025

Primal Scream • 2 min read

Primal Scream festival performance cancelled following criticism of “antisemitic” imagery shown at Roundhouse gig

A Roundhouse show by Primal Scream last week was criticised over controversial images shown during a performance of their song ‘Swastika Eyes’, which critics say were antisemitic. On the back of that criticism, organisers of the Trentham Live festival have now axed the band from their 2026 line-up…

Chris Cooke • 16 Dec 2025

Dionne Warwick • 2 min read

Rights management company says it boosted Dionne Warwick’s royalties “sixtyfold”, then she unilaterally cancelled its contracts

A New York music rights company has sued Dionne Warwick, seeking to enforce past contracts that grant it 25-50% of her royalty income. It says it helped Warwick handle legal and admin issues, boosting her label royalty payments “sixtyfold”, but now she wants to terminate her deals with the company…

Chris Cooke • 16 Dec 2025

Universal Music • 3 min read

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

Universal Music has proposed a remedy to allay the European Commission’s concerns over its bid to buy Downtown Music. That may involve the major proposing to sell off Downtown’s Curve business. But the indie sector remains adamant that no remedies will work and the EC should block the deal outright…

Chris Cooke • 15 Dec 2025

Artificial Intelligence • 3 min read

UK government must rule out new AI copyright exception after “overwhelming” consensus in consultation

The UK government has published an update on its consultation on copyright and AI, revealing that 88% of respondents said AI companies should be forced to get licences before making use of existing works. Ed Newton-Rex says ministers should now formally abandon plans for a new AI copyright exception…

Chris Cooke • 15 Dec 2025

CMU Selects • 2 min read

CMU Selects - the last week’s standout releases

Our selection of five releases that cut through the noise last week, from Together For Palestine, Sasha Keable, Sean Trelford, Deca OTA + Sex Mask…

Kaya Robertson • 15 Dec 2025

Massachusetts Institute Of Technology • 2 min read

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

MIT has published the results of its study into the carbon emissions of live music in the US and UK, part of an initiative backed by Coldplay. The academics behind the study say their stats and report should be used to inform “a new era of sustainability practices across all of live music”…

Chris Cooke • 12 Dec 2025

Pro Music Rights • 3 min read

Pro Music Rights threatens litigation over Congressman’s letter and BMI’s criticisms

Earlier this week US Congress member Scott Fitzgerald asked the FTC to investigate if collecting society Pro Music Rights was guilty of “deceptive practices”. The rights organisation says it is now considering legal action in relation to that letter and documents it cited, including one from BMI…

Chris Cooke • 12 Dec 2025

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