CMU | the music business explained (Page 51)

Budweiser boasts of “$0 spent on music rights” in “iconic songs” campaign, wins ad-land’s biggest prize

EU regulators formally launch investigation into Universal Music’s Downtown deal

Did Sony’s Rob Stringer just hand regulators the case to tank Universal’s Downtown dreams?

Ticketmaster offered touts meetings with Live Nation’s top lawyer

Don’t gaslight MPs warns Caroline Dinenage as she says ministers have got into a “terrible pickle” over AI

As another festival falls, AIF proposes new tax relief scheme

Major labels face setback as Trump’s pet DOJ legal beagle sides with Cox in piracy battle

We are just another victim in the shameful lineage of Apple intimidation and bullying, cries Musi

SoundCloud’s amended AI clause still “fundamentally terrible for artists” says Ed Newton-Rex

Guardrails aren’t proof of infringement says Anthropic as judge spanks AI company for “hallucinated” filin

Drake’s Super Bowl gripes in amended lawsuit show defamation action is really an attack on Kendrick Lamar’s success, says Universal

“I just don't understand how that can be fair use”, says judge in Meta AI trial

Pressure mounts for Universal Music Group’s $775 million Downtown acquisition as MEP highlights UMG’s “unprecedented control” of music ecosystem

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?

With the US record industry officially in recession can superpremium and superfans really save the major labels from streaming’s slowdown?

Record industry’s modest growth should make other industries jealous says IFPI boss, as labels weigh in on growth opportunities and AI threats

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

New AI transparency proposal in US Congress will “pave the way” for creator compensation says ASCAP boss

SXSW ditches weapons sponsors to burnish brand - so why won’t it ditch its ties to Saudi Arabia?

SXSW London could disrupt delicately balanced music ecosystem and should reconsider its date

CMU Approved • 1 min read

🎧 Approved: WILDES

WILDES, the project of musician and producer Ella Walker, crafts spacious, deconstructed, exquisitely arranged indie pop. Her new single, ‘Kopfkino’, a collaboration with St Francis Hotel, delves into the interplay between fantasy and reality, showcasing a bewitching and deceptively brooding sound.…

Kaya Robertson • 17 Oct 2024

Diddy • 3 min read

Diddy lawyers seek to identify his accusers, as yet another sexual assault lawsuit is filed

Lawyers working for Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs have written to a New York court seeking to identify the people who have accused the musician of sexual assault as part of the criminal case against him. Meanwhile, yet another lawsuit has been filed accusing Combs of violent sexual assault…

Chris Cooke • 16 Oct 2024

Live Nation • 3 min read

Rapino must give deposition in Astroworld lawsuit says Texas court

While wrongful death lawsuits over the Astroworld tragedy were all settled, hundreds of injured festival-goers also sued. They want Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino to sit for a deposition. He has been trying hard to stop that from happening, but the Texas Supreme Court has said it should go ahead…

Chris Cooke • 16 Oct 2024

Sphere Entertainment • 3 min read

Abu Dhabi next city to have a Sphere following Las Vegas - and after London knock-back

Plans to build a Sphere venue, like the one in Las Vegas, in London were scuppered when mayor Sadiq Khan blocked the project. Sphere Entertainment said it would instead find “forward-thinking cities” in which to expand its venue network. The first of those cities has been confirmed as Abu Dhabi…

Chris Cooke • 16 Oct 2024

AI • 3 min read

Parliament’s culture committee chair urges ministers to not put “flawed” AI copyright exception back on the agenda

There has been speculation that the UK government might be considering introducing a new copyright exception for AI companies, something the last government proposed and then rejected. Caroline Dinenage MP, Chair of Parliament’s culture committee, has written to ministers opposing any such plan…

Chris Cooke • 15 Oct 2024

[PIAS] • 3 min read

Universal buys out [PIAS] founders

In 2021, Universal Music announced a strategic alliance with independent distributor and label group [PIAS], before buying 49% of the company the following year. Now it has bought the company outright in a deal which sees [Integral], the services business of [PIAS], become part of Virgin Music Group…

Chris Cooke • 15 Oct 2024

CMU Approved • 1 min read

🎧 Approved: DITZ

Known for their blistering live shows, Brighton’s DITZ distill anger, sarcasm and scorn into taut, explosive tracks that challenge both sonically and thematically. Their new single ‘Space/Smile’ marks the first taste of their forthcoming album ‘Never Exhale’, due January 2025…

Kaya Robertson • 15 Oct 2024

Diddy • 3 min read

Diddy lawsuit floodgates begin to open: as six more lawsuits are filed, is this the trickle before the torrent?

Texas-based lawyer Tony Buzbee, who says he is representing at least 120 people who were allegedly sexually assaulted by Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs, has filed lawsuits on behalf of six of his clients. Four men and two women say they were sexually assaulted by Combs between the 1990s and 2021…

Chris Cooke • 15 Oct 2024

Sony Music • 4 min read

Spotify should have put up prices long ago; TikTok not a promo platform; AI will be a great tool for making music; Sony will take “more organic” approach to working with artists beyond releases, says Rob Stringer

Sony Music CEO Rob Stringer spoke at a Bloomberg’s Screentime conference last week, about getting more money out of TikTok, streaming subscribers, and opportunities for Sony and its artists. Those opportunities are stronger for Sony, he said, because it’s part of a wider entertainment group…

Chris Cooke • 14 Oct 2024

Releases & Tours • 2 min read

⏩ Releases & Tours: Oct 2024 (Week 41)

Each week CMU rounds up standout releases and tour announcements from the last seven days. This week: Charli XCX, Pa Salieu, Madlib, Ab-Soul, Major Lazer, Vybz Cartel, Strandz, The Cure + more, while tour announcements include Rizzle Kicks, Coco & Clair Clair + more.…

Kaya Robertson • 14 Oct 2024

Piracy • 2 min read

“Bulletproof” ISPs in the spotlight as RIAA submits annual piracy gripes to US government’s ‘notorious markets’ report

The US government is putting together its annual notorious markets report, which lists piracy sites of concern. The record industry has made its submission. Whereas last year concerns about AI vocal clones were included, this year’s contribution focuses on more conventional types of music piracy…

Chris Cooke • 14 Oct 2024

Caroline Dinenage MP • 1 min read

Caroline Dinenage MP writes to Lisa Nandy amid reports government may be considering a text and data mining AI copyright exception

Caroline Dinenage MP, Chair of Parliament’s culture committee, has written to ministers following reports that the new UK government might be considering introducing a text and data mining copyright exception that could be utlised by AI companies, a move the last government proposed and then dropped…

CMU • 14 Oct 2024