International press review

BUSINESS

Goldman Sachs analysts upbeat about music industry after a “turning point” year https://completemusicupdate.com/goldman-sachs-analysts-upbeat-about-music-industry-after-a-turning-point-year/

• MIDiA Global Music Projections 2024-2031: On the road to $100 Billion https://hypebot.com/hypebot/2024/05/midia-global-music-projections-2024-2031-on-the-road-to-100-billion.html

PRS Breaks the Billion-Pound Barrier as Revenue Rises?12% https://billboard.com/business/business-news/prs-for-music-revenue-2023-increase-1235693458/

• CEO Andrea Czapary Martin on how PRS For Music hit ￡1 billion in collections ahead of schedule https://musicweek.com/publishing/read/ceo-andrea-czapary-martin-on-how-prs-for-music-hit-1-billion-in-collections-ahead-of-schedule/089854
• MCPS mechanical royalty distributions grew by 8.5% in 2023 https://musically.com/2024/05/22/mcps-mechanical-royalty-distributions-grew-by-8-5-in-2023/…

ICE is now distributing more than €1bn to rightsholders a year https://musically.com/2024/05/22/ice-is-now-distributing-more-than-e1bn-to-rightsholders-a-year/…

Record performing right royalties in Sweden https://completemusicupdate.com/record-performing-right-royalties-in-sweden/

Spotify reveals UK-specific streaming royalties data https://musically.com/2024/05/09/spotify-reveals-uk-specific-streaming-royalties-data/…

Streams of Música Mexicana soared by 440% in five years on Spotify, platform says https://musicbusinessworldwide.com/streams-of-musica-mexicana-soared-by-440-in-five-years-spotify-says/

FINANCE

Universal Music Group revenues up 8% in Q1 https://musicweek.com/labels/read/universal-music-group-revenues-up-8-in-q1/089717

Sony generated $2.5bn from recorded music and publishing in calendar Q1 2024, up 14.7% YoY https://musicbusinessworldwide.com/sony-generated-2-5bn-from-recorded-music-and-publishing-q1/

Warner Music Group revenue up 7% in Q1 https://musicweek.com/labels/read/warner-music-group-revenue-up-7-in-q1/089744

Believe generated $250 million in Q1, up 15.9% YoY https://musicbusinessworldwide.com/believe-generated-250-million-in-q1-up-15-9-yoy/

• Believe's Alex Kennedy on UK growth, TikTok's role in artist discovery and the indie rock revival https://musicweek.com/labels/read/believe-s-alex-kennedy-on-uk-growth-tiktok-s-role-in-artist-discovery-and-the-indie-rock-revival/089704

Concord officially pulls out of Hipgnosis Songs Fund acquisition race https://musicbusinessworldwide.com/concord-officially-pulls-out-of-hipgnosis-songs-fund-acquisition-race/…

INDUSTRY

Universal and TikTok are best buds again https://completemusicupdate.com/universal-and-tiktok-are-best-buds-again/…

Sony Music warns global tech and streamers over AI use of its artists https://ft.com/content/c5b93b23-9f26-4e6b-9780-a5d3e5e7a409

• UK government says it will bring forward AI training rules https://musically.com/2024/05/20/uk-government-says-it-will-bring-forward-ai-training-rules/
• UK music report: 'AI can be a great servant but would be a terrible master' https://musically.com/2024/05/01/uk-music-report-ai-can-be-a-great-servant-but-would-be-a-terrible-master/…
• Spotify will not ban AI-made music, says boss https://bbc.com/news/technology-66882414
• Ircam Amplify Unveils New Software to Identify AI-generated Tracks https://link.medium.com/86Pb93TqiJb
• Randy Travis gets his voice back in a new Warner AI music experiment https://theverge.com/2024/5/5/24149685/randy-travis-ai-voice-clone-song-where-that-came-from…

Game-Changing Independent Indian Music Labels On Our Radar https://homegrown.co.in/homegrown-creators/game-changing-independent-indian-music-labels-on-our-radar

STREAMING

Publishers accuse Spotify of licensing gaps in letter the streaming service has dubbed a “misleading press stunt” https://completemusicupdate.com/publishers-accuse-spotify-of-licensing-gaps-in-letter-the-streaming-service-has-dubbed-a-misleading-press-stunt/

• Spotify Sued by Mechanical Licensing Collective Over Bundled Music-Audiobooks Subscription Plans, Which Result in Lower Royalties https://variety.com/2024/digital/news/spotify-sued-by-mechanical-licensing-collective-1236007093/
• Spotify’s Estimated $150M Songwriter Royalty Cuts: Music Industry Reactions?(Updating) https://billboard.com/business/publishing/spotify-songwriter-royalty-cuts-music-industry-reactions-1235681499/
• Sony Music Publishing 'considering all options' over Spotify bundle https://musically.com/2024/05/20/sony-music-publishing-considering-all-options-over-spotify-bundle/
• US publishers plan “legislative proposals” in response to Spotify audiobooks bundling bust up https://completemusicupdate.com/us-publishers-plan-legislative-proposals-in-response-to-spotify-audiobooks-bundling-bust-up/
• Spotify Must Ditch Its ‘Blatantly Dishonest’ Scheme to Deny Songwriters Their Fair Share (Guest?Column) https://billboard.com/business/streaming/spotify-pay-songwriters-fair-share-guest-column-1235689545/

Spotify hikes subscription price in France by 1.2% to match new music-streaming tax https://techcrunch.com/2024/05/29/spotify-hikes-subscription-price-in-france-by-1-2-to-match-new-music-streaming-tax/

Pandora quietly raises prices amid continuing decline in paying subscribers https://musicbusinessworldwide.com/pandora-quietly-raises-prices-amid-continuing-decline-in-paying-subscribers/

• SiriusXM Loses 445,000 Sat Radio, 64,000 Pandora Subscribers https://hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/siriusxm-loses-pandora-subscribers-1235886707/

Anghami’s paid subscribers jumped 18% in Q1 2024, after a 2023 of revenue ‘headwinds’ https://musicbusinessworldwide.com/anghamis-paid-subscribers-jumped-18-in-q1-2024-after-a-2023-of-revenue-headwinds/

LIVE MUSIC

Live Nation sees 21% revenue increase in Q1 https://theticketingbusiness.com/2024/05/03/live-nation-sees-21-revenue-increase-in-q1/

Revenue And Profits Up For CTS Eventim In Q1 2024 https://celebrityaccess.com/2024/05/23/revenue-and-profits-up-for-cts-eventim-in-q1-2024/

Live Nation and Ticketmaster Sued by U.S. Justice Department: ‘It Is Time to Break It Up’ https://variety.com/2024/music/new

• Ticketmaster ‘hack’ sees 560m customers’ data up for sale https://theticketingbusiness.com/2024/05/29/ticketmaster-hack-sees-560m-customers-data-up-for-sale/

EU Completes First Coordinated Action on Viagogo https://festivalinsights.com/2024/05/eu-completes-coordinated-action-viagogo/

"The music festival industry is suffering ... there is something fundamentally wrong at its heart" https://musically.com/2024/05/03/the-music-festival-industry-is-suffering-there-is-something-fundamentally-wrong-at-its-heart/

• 40 UK festivals have now been cancelled this summer – with over 170 disappearing in five years https://nme.com/news/music/40-uk-festivals-have-now-been-cancelled-this-summer-with-over-170-disappearing-in-five-years-3758805

MUSICTECH

Suno raises $125M to become the ‘ChatGPT’ of music creation https://venturebeat.com/ai/suno-raises-125m-to-become-the-chatgpt-of-music-creation/

• Google unveils ‘Music AI Sandbox’ with the help of Wyclef Jean, Justin Tranter and Marc Rebillet - Music Business Worldwide https://musicbusinessworldwide.com/google-unveils-music-ai-sandbox-with-the-help-of-wyclef-jean-justin-tranter-and-marc-rebillet/
• AI-powered B2B audio company Music.ai strikes AI training partnership with cloud computing platform Vultr https://musicbusinessworldwide.com/ai-powered-b2b-audio-company-music-ai-strikes-ai-training-partnership-with-cloud-computing-platform-vultr/

Downtown secures $500m credit agreement from Bank of America for indie artist advances https://musicbusinessworldwide.com/downtown-secures-500m-credit-facility-from-bank-of-america-for-indie-artist-advances12345/

Music licensing firm Melodie raises $1m of bridge funding https://musically.com/2024/05/15/music-licensing-firm-melodie-raises-1m-of-bridge-funding/…

Royalty Advance Platform RoyFi Announces New Partnerships to Fund Artists https://digitalmusicnews.com/2024/05/09/royfi-royalty-advance-partnerships/

Mogul has monitored $100 million in royalties in three months since launch https://musically.com/2024/05/09/mogul-has-monitored-100-million-in-royalties-in-three-months-since-launch/…

Epidemic Sound considers IPO by 2025 (report) https://musicbusinessworldwide.com/epidemic-sound-considers-ipo-by-2025-report/

WEB3

World’s only copy of Wu-Tang Clan’s mythical album to be played for public https://washingtonpost.com/style/2024/05/28/wu-tang-clan-album-shaolin-martin-shkreli/

Web3 Music Association launches to make music industry a 'driving force' for advanced technologies https://musicweek.com/digital/read/web3-music-association-launches-to-make-music-industry-a-driving-force-for-advanced-technologies/089835

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