News Chris Whiteley appointed Managing Director of Northern Europe at Spotify Whiteley served at Netflix for nearly a decade, including most recently as Managing Director, Business Development in the UK
Analysis News UMG asks court to dismiss Drake’s ‘Not Like Us’ lawsuit: ‘He has sued his own record label in a misguided attempt to salve his wounds.’ Company tells court that rapper's "claims against UMG are no more than Drake’s attempt to save face for his unsuccessful rap battle with Lamar."
News ARK launches to protect music IP in the age of AI, with investment from BMI and Claritas Capital The platform uses blockchain technology and biometric verification to help artists, writers, musicians, and other creatives secure their work in the digital age
Interviews ‘I’ve spent every day since I’ve known Lola believing that it was going to happen.’ Nick Shymansky on Lola, Amy, gut vs data and the importance of knowing the difference between good and great
News Judge rejects Live Nation’s bid to dismiss parts of DOJ antitrust lawsuit Federal Judge Arun Subramanian upheld US states’ standing to seek damages on behalf of consumers.
News SM Entertainment injects another $4M into SM Friends subsidiary, a.k.a. Kreation Music (report) The latest funding round follows a larger KRW 15 billion investment made into SM Friends in 2023
Analysis News From Sony’s deepfake takedowns to Ackman’s UMG stake sale… it’s MBW’s Weekly Round-Up The biggest stories from the past week – all in one place…
News Brad Banducci named CEO of ticketing firm TEG, as Geoff Jones becomes Chairman TEG is one of Asia Pacific’s largest live entertainment and ticketing companies
News After raising $3.2m, music production and fan engagement platform AMPOLLO unveils advisory board Platform claims to provide 'a unique range of user-friendly tools and engagement opportunities to creators working in music.'
News Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square to raise $1.4bn from sale of 2.7% stake in UMG (report) 'We believe UMG is one of the best businesses we have ever owned,' said Ackman on X today
Analysis News Believe generated over $1bn in 2024, as company’s annual revenues grow 11.5% YoY Paris-headquartered music company has published its financial results for FY 2024
News Sony Music sues University of Southern California over music used in social media posts Lawyers for Sony provided a list of 283 USC social media posts they say violated the company's copyrights
News Global recorded music revenues rose 6.5% to $36.2bn in 2024, says MIDiA Research According to MIDiA, streaming revenue grew 6.2% YoY to $22.2 billion
News Bria raises $40m to expand patented attribution engine to AI-generated music content Latest round brings company's total capital raised to $65 million
News BMI launches ‘Spark’ program offering tools and resources to music creators The initiative, available to its affiliated songwriters, composers, and producers, aims to support artists at every career stage, BMI says
News George Clinton sues former business partner for allegedly withholding royalties and other claims The funk music legend’s lawsuit describes former business partner Armen Boladian as a “copyright troll”
News France’s recorded music revenues reached $1.1bn in 2024, up 7% YoY The growing popularity of music streaming and a boost from the Paris Olympics propelled France to a large increase in music exports
News UK trade recorded music revenues topped $1.9bn in 2024 The recorded music industry group is warning of risks to the UK industry from increased competition and proposed AI rules