Music industry legal news

Kneecap thank fans who protested outside Westminster court yesterday as the “carnival of distraction rolls on”

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Kneecap • 2 min read

Kneecap thank fans who protested outside Westminster court yesterday as the “carnival of distraction rolls on”

Kneecap’s Mo Chara was in court yesterday facing a terror offence charge over allegations he displayed a Hezbollah flag at a London show last year. His lawyers are trying to get the case thrown out on a timing technicality. Hundreds of fans showed up outside the court to support the rapper…

Chris Cooke • 21 Aug 2025

Suno says indie musician’s copyright claims about its AI’s output are bogus

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Suno • 3 min read

Suno says indie musician’s copyright claims about its AI’s output are bogus

In June, independent artist Anthony Justice sued AI company Suno for copyright infringement, following the lead of the major labels. His lawsuit made copyright claims about Suno’s training data and the tracks it outputs. Suno says the claims relating to the outputs should be immediately dismissed…

Chris Cooke • 20 Aug 2025

FTC sues ticket touting business that claims it is endorsed by Ticketmaster

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Secondary Ticketing • 2 min read

FTC sues ticket touting business that claims it is endorsed by Ticketmaster

The FTC has sued a ticket touting company that uses dubious tactics to access tickets, including using 49 Ticketmaster accounts to buy 273 tickets for one Taylor Swift show that had a six-tickets-per-person limit. However, the accused business says its tactics are authorised by Ticketmaster…

Chris Cooke • 19 Aug 2025

Drake’s claims are “farcical” says Lucian Grainge as defamation battle rumbles on

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Drake • 4 min read

Drake’s claims are “farcical” says Lucian Grainge as defamation battle rumbles on

Lucian Grainge made his own declaration to the court last week as part of Drake’s defamation legal battle with Universal Music. The major’s CEO calls Drake’s claims about his role in releasing Kendrick Lamar’s ‘Not Like Us’ “farcical”. The rapper is currently trying to get access to Grainge’s emails…

Chris Cooke • 18 Aug 2025

South Korea’s top court says viral hit ‘Baby Shark’ didn’t infringe copyright

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Music industry legal news coverage • 2 min read

South Korea’s top court says viral hit ‘Baby Shark’ didn’t infringe copyright

A legal battle over the copyright in ‘Baby Shark’ is over. Although the annoying viral hit is based on a US folk song, an American musician said Pinkfong, the company behind the hit, had used his adaptation of it, which should be protected by copyright. But South Korea’s Supreme Court says it isn’t…

Chris Cooke • 14 Aug 2025

Drake wants to trawl through Papa Grainge’s emails in ‘Not Like Us’ libel battle

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Drake • 3 min read

Drake wants to trawl through Papa Grainge’s emails in ‘Not Like Us’ libel battle

Drake’s defamation battle with Universal Music over its role in releasing Kendrick Lamar’s ‘Not Like Us’ is in the discovery phase. Drake wants access to Lucian Grainge’s emails, but the major has so far refused. The rapper’s lawyers now want the court to force Universal to open up Grainge’s inbox…

Chris Cooke • 13 Aug 2025

Music publishers want to amend Anthropic lawsuit because of pirated lyrics

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Anthropic • 2 min read

Music publishers want to amend Anthropic lawsuit because of pirated lyrics

Music publishers locked in a legal battle with AI company Anthropic want to amend their lawsuit, because of a recent ruling in another copyright case involving Anthropic. Following that ruling, it’s important the publishers stress that the AI business used pirated lyrics when training its model…

Chris Cooke • 13 Aug 2025

Shoe shop TikTok spat escalates as Sony sues DSW over unlicensed music

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Sony Music • 2 min read

Shoe shop TikTok spat escalates as Sony sues DSW over unlicensed music

DSW Shoe Warehouse has been sued a second time, this time by Sony Music, for putting pop songs in its social posts without securing the necessary licences. The shoe seller pre-empted the lawsuit last month insisting that its marketeers were misled by social platforms regarding using music in videos…

Chris Cooke • 12 Aug 2025

Australian music industry says proposed AI copyright exception would be “a dangerous step backwards”

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Artificial Intelligence • 3 min read

Australian music industry says proposed AI copyright exception would be “a dangerous step backwards”

Last week the Australian government’s Productivity Commission invited feedback on the proposal that a new exception be added to the country’s copyright law to benefit AI companies. The music industry has hit back at that proposal, with indie label group AIR calling it “a dangerous step backwards”…

Chris Cooke • 11 Aug 2025

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Streaming Levy • 3 min read

US Republicans want Trump to use trade talk pressure to kill Canada’s streaming levy

US politicians are going after the new Canadian streaming levy. After pressure from Donald Trump prompted Canada to drop its Digital Services Tax, Republicans have now urged the White House to similarly pressure the Canadian government over the separate 5% levy on streaming services…

Chris Cooke • 11 Aug 2025

SoundExchange can’t sue Sirius in federal courts, says judge in royalties dispute

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SoundExchange • 3 min read

SoundExchange can’t sue Sirius in federal courts, says judge in royalties dispute

A US judge has said that collecting society SoundExchange doesn’t have the right to file lawsuits in order to enforce its members’ rights. Which isn’t ideal. That ruling has been made in SoundExchange’s ongoing royalties dispute with satellite broadcaster Sirius, which it sued in 2023…

Chris Cooke • 08 Aug 2025

HYBE founder returning to Korea to deal with mounting controversies, he tells staff in leaked memo

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Hybe • 2 min read

HYBE founder returning to Korea to deal with mounting controversies, he tells staff in leaked memo

HYBE founder Bang Si-hyuk has told staff that he is returning to Korea to “transparently work” with officials investigating allegations he misled investors ahead of the company’s IPO. Bang has been in the US of late, which he says “contributed to confusion and frustration” around the investigation…

Chris Cooke • 07 Aug 2025