News From Universal’s AI fightback to Primary Wave’s $100m deal in India… it’s MBW’s Weekly Round-Up The biggest music biz headlines from the past week, all in one place
News YouTube ad revenue dropped 2.5% YoY in Q1, but paid subscription sales increased 9% The number of YouTube Music and YouTube Premium subscriptions reached 80 million towards the end of last year
Analysis Sony generated $2.18bn from recorded music and publishing in calendar Q1, up 9.7% YoY SZA's SOS was Sony Music Entertainment's biggest-selling project globally in the quarter
News Val Blavatnik joins Warner Music Group board, succeeding Alex Blavatnik Since 2021, Val Blavatnik has served on the investment team at LionTree, focused on the media and technology industries
News Triller to pay Sony Music $4.57m as video platform admits liability for breached licensing deal Sony says: "Prompt entry of judgment is needed to protect against any further dissipation of Triller’s assets or, worse still, a bankruptcy filing."
Analysis News Max Lousada on Warner’s dance strategy, A&R, AI and the ‘art’ of what’s possible with technology Max Lousada, CEO of Recorded Music at Warner Music Group, gave a keynote interview at IMS in Ibiza this week
News Lauren Spencer-Smith’s ex-manager files $45m lawsuit against Universal Music Group, alleging ‘libel,’ ‘slander,’ ‘tortious interference’ The lawsuit seeks USD $45 million in damages, including $25 million for alleged defamatory conduct
News With 2bn plays on YouTube per day, Epidemic Sound swung to positive EBITDA in 2022 Epidemic's solid gain in net sales in 2022 was made on “significantly stronger streaming revenues,” the company said in a statement
Analysis News Believe generated $213m in Q1, up 22.2% YoY Paris-headquartered music company Believe has published its financial results for Q1 2023 (the three months to end of March)
Analysis Universal Music Group: Yes, ripping off Drake’s voice for that AI track was illegal – and we’re certain of it. Sir Lucian Grainge and Michael Nash couldn't be more unequivocal: The rash of copycat AI voices, they say, is 'clearly illegal'
Analysis News Tencent Music’s independent artist platform reached 390,000 musicians at the end of 2022, adding 40,000 in Q4 alone Tencent Music Entertainment has published its Annual Report for 2022
News Microsoft’s $69bn takeover of Activision Blizzard blocked by UK regulator over cloud gaming concerns The UK’s antitrust regulator has blocked Microsoft’s proposed acquisition of gaming giant Activision Blizzard
News Sony Music Entertainment UK relaunches Epic Records in the UK, led by Sarah Lockhart Epic Records UK will operate alongside other Sony Music labels in the UK including RCA, Columbia, and Ministry of Sound
Analysis News Universal generated $2.6bn in Q1, as subscription streaming revenues jumped over 10% YoY Top sellers for the quarter included releases from King & Prince, Morgan Wallen and Taylor Swift
News TuneCore and Beatport strike partnership to extend self-releasing artists’ reach to DJs, dance music producers Tunecore artists using Unlimited distribution plans will be able to send their music to the Beatport platform for an add-on fee of $7.99 a month
News Ed Sheeran fights accusations of copying Marvin Gaye song in NY court: ‘If I’d done what you’re accusing me of doing, I’d be quite an idiot.’ Sheeran defended himself in court on Tuesday (April 26)
Analysis The music industry freaked out over ‘fake Drake’. But are these AI tracks just the latest take on remixing? Jessica Powell, CEO of stem music company Audioshake, offers a different perspective on the music biz story of the moment
News Peter Gabriel and Chris Stapleton weigh in on debate around the use of generative AI in music Two prominent artists chime in on the controversy around AI-generated music