Analysis News From Robert Kyncl’s NMPA keynote to music publishers’ FTC complaint against Spotify… it’s MBW’s Weekly Round-Up The five biggest stories to hit our headlines over the past seven days…
News A2IM CEO Dr. Richard James Burgess to step down after 10 years The Board of Directors has initiated a search for his successor
Analysis News Robert Kyncl turns up heat on PRO metadata matching, and other things we learned from his NMPA keynote in New York Warner boss was grilled by NMPA chief, David Israelite, at New York event this week
News US music publishing revenue jumped 10.7% to $6.2bn in 2023… outstripping recorded music’s growth in percentage terms The NMPA is focusing its energy on a battle against Spotify over royalty payments
Analysis How Sony’s $6bn+ M&A splurge has set the pace for music acquisitions over the past decade Rob Stringer claimed last month that Sony has outstripped spending at other major companies
News The Circuit Group launches Label Services division with key hires; Appoints Chief Strategy Officer Company was launched in 2023 with plans to acquire stakes in song catalogs
Analysis News What’s behind France and Canada’s music streaming taxes, and where could they happen next (hint: the USA?) This year, two significant music markets – France and Canada – have slapped new taxes on the revenues of music streaming services
News HYBE eyes creator economy expansion with new THEUS superfan app Developed by HYBE's R&D unit Binary Korea, some 20 creators are expected to be on the platform when it launches on June 22.
News Musical AI, formerly Somms.ai, unveils new platform for ethical use of copyrighted material in generative AI The platform is being marketed as a “secure go-between” for rightsholders and AI developers
Analysis News Music Publishers file complaint with US Federal Trade Commission against Spotify over audiobook bundle NMPA has also referred the matter to the state attorneys general in Tennessee, New York, California, Colorado, Georgia, Connecticut, Illinois, Washington DC, North Carolina and Oregon
News Thomas Coesfeld talks BMG’s ‘unique offering’ and having ‘the financial power of a major’ at Music Investor Conference in New York BMG CEO participated in a keynote fireside chat at the Second Annual Music Investor Conference hosted by NMPA boss David Israelite
News Former Ingrooves CEO Bob Roback named Chief Operating Officer at UTA The former CEO of Ingrooves Music Group will be responsible for overall operations at the talent agency
News Indie label 2Point9 files copyright lawsuit against Sony’s Ministry of Sound Recordings in the UK over DJ Regard’s ‘Ride It’ 2Point9 says it's been treated with "arrogance and dismissiveness" by Ministry of Sound Recordings
News Ariana Grande to join superfan platform Weverse; artist to continue business partnership with HYBE Grande and HYBE America, led by CEO Scooter Braun, will be 'continuing their long-standing partnership'
News BMG enters into worldwide deal with Republic Records for new Jelly Roll album Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Jelly Roll has extended his current label partnership with BBR Music Group
News Metallica partner with Epic Games to join Fortnite as Season 4 Festival ‘Icons’ Metallica has been announced as the "icon" for Epic Games’ Fortnite Festival Season 4
News Meta renews licensing deal with Merlin for independent music across Instagram, Facebook and Messenger Merlin claims to represent 15% of the recorded music market
Interviews Breakr, a Nas-backed startup with $9m raised to date, wants to ‘democratize’ music marketing with its AI-driven tech platform Breakr provides software and infrastructure for labels and artists to connect directly with influencers.