AI lawsuit warns of “devastating impacts” on human creativity
On this week’s show, we discuss the launch of the record industry’s first major lawsuits against music-generating AI companies - with the RIAA coordinating litigation against Suno and Udio - plus a group of songwriters are suing PRS.
SECTION TIMES
01: Labels v Suno + Udio (00:04:30)
02: News in brief (00:15:20)
03: Songwriters v PRS (00:18:05)
(Timings may be slightly different due to adverts)
THIS WEEK'S MAIN STORIES
• Suno and Udio’s “lawless” behaviour cheapens human creativity with sound-a-likes and knock-offs says watershed RIAA lawsuit
• Suno boss accuses music industry of “reverting to its old lawyer-led playbook”
• Udio responds to record label lawsuit insisting its AI model ‘listens’ rather than ‘copies’
• PRS sued over “unreasonable and unnecessary hurdles” for writers directly licensing their live performances
NEWS IN BRIEF
• UK Music names Tom Kiehl as new CEO
• Live Nation boss Michael Rapino sued by shareholder over DoJ action
• SiriusXM breaches consumer rights by charging an extra music royalties extra fee, says lawsuit
• KKR acquires Superstruct
ALSO MENTIONED
• SXSW ditches weapons sponsors to burnish brand - so why won’t it ditch its ties to Saudi Arabia?
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25:15
Spotify referred to FTC over “unlawful conduct”
On this week’s show, we discuss the latest escalation in the fight over Spotify’s reclassification of its premium subscription as an audiobook and music bundle in the US, the lawsuit against Drake for putting one of his own song titles on a t-shirt, and the return of the band formerly known as Easy Life, who have nothing to do with easyJet.
SECTION TIMES
01: Spotify (00:10:22)
02: News in brief (00:17:24)
03: Drake and Hard Life (00:19:28)
(Timings may be slightly different due to adverts)
THIS WEEK'S MAIN STORIES
• Music publishers now fighting Spotify audiobook bundling trick on multiple fronts
• Drake sued over t-shirts referencing his track ‘Members Only’
• Easy Life return as Hard Life following easyGroup legal battle
NEWS IN BRIEF
• The COVID trend of late-in-the-day ticket purchases has continued, says Eventbrite
• Musicians now see success from a more long-term perspective, study finds
• Martin Shkreli ordered to hand over copies of Wu-Tang album
ALSO MENTIONED
• Touting, touring and AI in the spotlight in election manifestos
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26:38
It’s been a bad week to be Live Nation
On this week's show we discuss the US government’s legal action against Live Nation that seeks to force it to sell off Ticketmaster, ticket touts’ plans to fight the Labour Party’s proposed 10% price cap on the resale of tickets, and more.
SECTION TIMES
01: Live Nation (00:06:40)
02: News in brief (00:23:07)
03: Ticket resale lobbying (00:26:52)
(Timings may be slightly different due to adverts)
THIS WEEK'S MAIN STORIES
• Live Nation monopoly is “anticompetitive” and must be broken up says DoJ lawsuit
• Live Nation faces class action that could involve millions of ticket buyers
• Hackers claim to have accessed personal data about 560 million Ticketmaster customers
• Campaigners respond to “astounding” report on the “sinister” lobbying plans of ticket touts
NEWS IN BRIEF
• US court agrees to fast-track legal challenge over TikTok ban
• Parklife founder Sacha Lord under pressure as Arts Council and GMCA launch investigations into COVID funding
• Queen deal
• Government confirms it has issued drug-testing licences to “some of the leading festivals in the UK”
ALSO MENTIONED
• Spotify sued over decision to stop supporting Car Thing
• Spotify price hike in France
• Revealed: how touts drew up secret plans to sabotage Labour’s ticket reforms (The Guardian)
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34:04
“Spotify is not a business partner”, says NMPA boss
On this week's show we discuss the battle between the music publishers and Spotify as it ramps up another gear, Sony Music's lawsuit accusing the Marriott hotel chain of “rampant” copyright infringement, and more.
SECTION TIMES
01: Spotify (00:04:39)
02: News in brief (00:22:15)
03: Sony Music (00:25:13)
(Timings may be slightly different due to adverts)
THIS WEEK'S MAIN STORIES
• Spotify’s conduct proves US compulsory licence isn’t working, says NMPA boss
• Sony sues Marriott over social media posts
NEWS IN BRIEF
• Leadmill eviction battle in court
• Live industry welcomes ticket tout prison sentences
• TikTok wants its legal case against US “sell-or-be-banned” law fast-tracked
• Scarlett Johansson accuses ChatGPT of stealing her voice
ALSO MENTIONED
• Live Nation monopoly is “anticompetitive” and must be broken up says DoJ lawsuit
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29:52
Music publishers go to war with Spotify
On this week's show we discuss the battle between music publishers and Spotify over its plans to reclassify its subscriptions as bundles of music, audiobooks and podcasts, and commercial media companies hit out at the BBC’s plan to sell advertising on its podcasts.
SECTION TIMES
01: Spotify (00:03:48)
02: News in brief (00:15:20)
03: BBC (00:17:48)
(Timings may be slightly different due to adverts)
THIS WEEK'S MAIN STORIES
• The MLC is suing Spotify over audiobook bundling
• Publishers accuse Spotify of licensing gaps in letter the streaming service has dubbed a “misleading press stunt”
• US music publishers ramp up the rhetoric against Spotify's royalty reducing bundling trick
• Media companies hit out at plan for BBC to sell ads alongside its podcasts
NEWS IN BRIEF
• TICKET Act passed by US House Of Representatives
• Universal removed as defendant on explosive Diddy lawsuit
• TikTok creators file lawsuit against US sell-or-be-banned law
• Utopia swings the axe again with significant job losses across remaining non-UK operations
• ATC takes majority stake in Raw Power
ALSO MENTIONED
• Sony Music tells 700+ AI companies to respect its copyrights
Ireland