Analysis News UMG has struck a new YouTube deal that includes ‘guardrails’ around AI… and 3 other things Sir Lucian Grainge said on Universal’s Q3 earnings call Deal covers both recorded music and music publishing
News YouTube ad revenues reached $10.3B in Q3 2025, up 15% YoY, as Shorts ‘now earn more revenue per watch hour’ than long-form content in the US YouTube Shorts 'now earn more revenue per watch hour' than traditional YouTube videos, the company says
News DistroKid launches new platform for artists to sell merch directly to fans The new feature allows musicians to set up online stores selling merch like t-shirts, tote bags and mugs printed with album artwork.
News J. Cole sued by Cam’ron for at least $500K over ‘Ready 24’ Cam'ron says he was never paid for his lyrical and vocal contributions to 'Ready '24'
News Drake files to appeal dismissal of UMG lawsuit over Kendrick Lamar’s ‘Not Like Us’ Drake has filed a Notice of Appeal to challenge the dismissal of his defamation lawsuit against Universal Music Group.
News After hitting 100m registered users, Bandsintown launches Marketplace to connect 700K artists with distribution, data, and merch tools The company recently reached 100 million users and seeks to help musicians navigate what it describes as “unpredictable algorithms."
News un:hurd closes seven-figure funding round, with participation from Willard Ahdritz, Hazel Savage, and more un:hurd also attracted new investors including Mindset Ventures Music Tech
News OpenAI, valued at $500bn, reportedly working on generative AI music tool The move would bring OpenAI into an increasingly crowded field of AI music generation platforms
News Switzerland’s MusicBird strikes music rights deal with estate of prominent grunge producer Rick Parashar Deal comprises Parashar’s producing income from albums by Nickelback, Alice in Chains, Blind Melon and 3 Doors Down
Interviews Why Reservoir bet tens of millions of dollars on Jazz legend and ‘definition of cool’ Miles Davis Reservoir President Rell Lafargue gives us an exclusive look at the company's Miles Davis deal
News Now IMPALA says UMG/Downtown deal would ‘harm cultural diversity’; Universal rubbishes accusation in trade body’s new paper Org has published a paper titled "Universal/Downtown – Why does it matter from a cultural diversity perspective?"
News AI-powered artist management service startup MNRGS.AI raises $1m MNGRS.AI was co-founded in 2022 by Alexandre Deniot and Thomas Quenoil, both former executives at MIDEM and Music Universal Group.
Analysis News Deezer reports Q3 revenues of $153m, confirms subscriber growth momentum in France Deezer's AI detection system and personalization features are 'attracting global attention, opening opportunities beyond our core markets,' said CEO Alexis Lanternier
News YouTube’s ‘twin engine of ads and subscriptions is firing on all cylinders,’ says Lyor Cohen, as platform makes $8bn+ payout to the music industry over the past year The figure was shared by Lyor Cohen, YouTube’s Global Head of Music, at the Billboard Latin Music Conference in Miami on Wednesday.
News YouTube showcases new AI likeness detection tool For now, the tool will be available to creators on YouTube, but it's widely expected something similar will roll out for the general public as well