CMU | the music business explained (Page 90)

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

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

One Liners - quickfire news from the music business • 13 min read

⏩ One Liners: deals, appointments, streaming and digital news including Legends ASM Global deal, Apple’s Airtel partnership, BMG financials, PRS Foundation promoter grants, plus latest releases

Today: Legends deal to acquire ASM Global closes; Apple's deal with Indian tel-co Bharti Airtel prompts Wynk Music closure; Meta and Spotify plotting more integration; BMG financials, PRS Foundation promoter grants, BRIT Awards presenter talent search; latest new releases + more…

CMU • 28 Aug 2024

Op-Eds • 7 min read

Op-ed: Cyanite CEO Markus Schwarzer on why keywords still matter for music data

Markus Schwarzer, CEO and co-founder of Cyanite argues that however powerful search algorithms become, keywords remain a fundamental part of the toolkit for catalogue management, acquisitions and marketing…

CMU Contributors • 28 Aug 2024

AI • 2 min read

Digital replica law passed by California Senate to “protect next generation of performers” rights from AI exploitations

Law-makers in California have passed a new law that will stop studios and labels assuming that wide-ranging contract terms relating to ‘likeness rights’ mean they can generate digital replicas that imitate a performer’s voice, image or physical appearance without explicit permission…

Chris Cooke • 28 Aug 2024

Operation Redirect • 1 min read

Record industry welcomes takedown of eight piracy sites in Brazil

The Brazilian authorities have been running a new anti-piracy programme called Operation Redirect targeting torrent, stream-ripping and illegal download services in the country, with eight websites being taken down so far. It follows previous anti-piracy work under the banner Operation 404…

Chris Cooke • 28 Aug 2024

Shaboozey • 3 min read

Warner Chappell is “hindering” Shaboozey’s efforts to buy himself out of his deal, alleges lawsuit

On the back of two Beyonce co-writes and a global hit, Shaboozey wants to negotiate a new deal around his publishing. However, he first needs to buy himself out of an existing deal with Warner Chappel and, he claims, his old label is stopping him from doing that…

Chris Cooke • 27 Aug 2024

One Liners - quickfire news from the music business • 9 min read

⏩ One Liners: deals, appointments, legal and digital including Dua Lipa’s ice cream plans, Sony launches a blockchain network called Soneium, Outkast is suing ATLiens, Tom Grennan goes to the golf, BMG hires new marketing honcho, plus releases & tours

Today: Dua Lipa ice cream TM, TickPick raises $250m; BMG confirms new EVP hire Celine Joshua, Apple’s new CFO; Isaac Hayes estate granted emergency injunction in Trump dispute, Foo Fighters x Trump, MIA <3 Trump, Bad Bunny sports agency vs MLB players, Gallagher brothers bury hatchet for big pay-day…

CMU • 27 Aug 2024

CMU Approved • 1 min read

🎧 Approved: Tara Lily

South London British Bengali musician Tara Lily transcends jazz, electronica, trip-hop and alternative R&B, all while weaving in Indian soundscapes to create something uniquely her own. Her latest single, ‘Breathe Now’, is a jazz-infused dnb track built on a classic 90s jungle sample.…

Kaya Robertson • 27 Aug 2024

Anthropic • 3 min read

Using lyrics without permission has not caused any “irreparable harm” to music publishers says Anthropic in injunction dispute

Earlier this month the music publishers suing Anthropic asked the court to issue an injunction stopping the AI company from infringing their copyrights while they pursue their lawsuit. In a new filing with the court, Anthropic says no injunction is required…

Chris Cooke • 27 Aug 2024

CMU Digest • 6 min read

📑 CMU Digest: Donald Trump's music problem + more states join DOJ v Live Nation

CMU Digest is our weekly round-up of the most interesting music business news stories from the last seven days.…

CMU Daily • 27 Aug 2024

One Liners - quickfire news from the music business • 8 min read

⏩ One Liners: deals, digital, legal and live news from across the music industry including Primary Wave's flugelhorn deal, Kid Cudi's Bisquik, 1300 Yamaha keyboards stolen, South Korea Spotify scrutiny

Today: boohooMAN clothing, Dolly Parton lipstick, Kid Cudi cake mix and DJ Khaled milk drink; Spotify under scrutiny in South Korea; NetEase Cloud Music financials; Bandcamp's Linkfire tie-up; Camp Bestival to cut Shropshire edition in 2025; A$AP Rocky release delayed by leaks and clearances + more…

CMU • 23 Aug 2024

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

Storm Lilian is causing chaos across the UK with Leeds, Creamfields and New Order already affected

Stormy weather across the UK has impacted on this week’s outdoor live music events. New Order were forced to cancel a show in Wales, Creamfields experienced some minor delays, and the Leeds Festival had to delay its opening, with three stages remaining closed all day today…

Chris Cooke • 23 Aug 2024

Pandora • 3 min read

Pandora is “scrambling” for “meritless” defences to “bury” comedians in “exorbitant legal costs”, says latest filing in comedy streaming lawsuit

Comedians involved in a legal battle with Pandora have criticised the streaming service’s latest arguments. They say it streamed recordings of their performances without licensing the rights in their jokes. Pandora argues its deals from the majors covered those rights - the comedians disagree…

Chris Cooke • 23 Aug 2024