News Sony Music soared in calendar Q1, with over $1.3bn in recorded music revenue banked Sony Music Publishing revenues rise 11% year-on-year at the US dollar level
News BTS and Big Hit (HYBE) sued for copyright infringement over K-Pop reality TV show I-Land Big Hit also named in lawsuit claiming that the idea for the show was "stolen"
News Warner Chappell Music signs Ari Lennox to global publishing administration deal Lennox has collaborated with Doja Cat, Chance the Rapper, Wale, Ty Dolla $ign, Kiana Ledé
News New UK investment fund offers loans of $2m-plus to artists, songwriters and music rightsholders Music Credit Fund launches, backed by investment house with a $3bn portfolio
News Universal’s UK Task Force for Meaningful Change issues manifesto outlining goals to achieve ‘lasting social change’ Partnership with social enterprise The Black Curriculum also announced
Analysis News Spotify’s average subscriber is now paying less than $5 per month Bang goes the ARPU (again), as SPOT reveals figure fell to just €4.12 in the first three months of 2021
News Anton Partridge named Director of Global Strategy, Electronic Music for Warner Recorded Music Partridge to spearhead company's worldwide electronic music strategy
News Japan’s Avex Group expands into North America, led by President Naoki Osada Avex USA to house Avex USA Publishing, record label SELENE and the Future of Music Investment Fund
News Spotify subscriptions grew just 2% to 158m in Q1, Monthly Active Users topped 356m Spotify has published its results for Q1 2021
News Paula Salvatore appointed Vice President of Client Relations and Studio Marketing at Universal Exec to oversee client relations, booking and studio marketing across UMG's US commercial recording studios
News We told you Warner Music Group was becoming a media company – now it’s launched an advertising division. New digital advertising and creative content department will bring together the company's 'digital advertising firepower under one unit'
News Songtradr acquires film, TV and gaming music data platform Tunefind Tunefind attracts over 30m unique visitors each year
News Tuned Global teams with fitness brand Psycle London to develop home workout music streaming app Company to power playlist app for home fitness brand’s 70+ instructors
Interviews ‘It’s about the outsiders and the weirdos, that’s kind of what Parlophone is for.’ Parlophone's co-Presidents tell MBW they have created the label they believe one of the most famous names in the music industry deserves
News Blackstone is buying eOne Music from Hasbro in $385m cash deal Chris Taylor to run eOne Music as a standalone company under Blackstone ownership
News Spotify is launching podcast subscriptions… but it’s not going to make any money from them Spotify will reportedly announce its own podcast subscription offering soon
News Kobalt’s Chief Marketing Officer, Ryan Wright, leaves company after seven years Kobalt founder and Chairman pays tribute to Wright's contribution to company's success
News After selling catalog to Concord, Downtown launches new services division led by Mike Smith Downtown projects that it will generate over $600m from services this year alone