Primary Wave raises $2.2 billion for fourth music fund

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Primary Wave Music IP Fund 4 is the fourth consecutive oversubscribed fund from Primary Wave, which says the vehicle is the “largest dedicated closed-end music royalties fund raised to date in the industry”. The fund was backed by a global investor base spanning insurance companies, pension funds, endowments, and large family offices, according to a press release, which also noted that Primary Wave is a strategic partner of financial giant Brookfield Asset Management.

Source: Primary Wave raises $2.2 billion for fourth music fund

Universal is selling 50% of its Spotify stake, generating around $1.4 billion

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Universal Music Group will sell half of its equity stake in Spotify and use the proceeds to help fund an expanded share buyback program totaling EUR €1 billion (USD $1.17 billion), the company confirmed on Wednesday (April 29) alongside its Q1 2026 results. The decision comes three weeks after Bill Ackman‘s Pershing Square launched a $64 billion takeover bid for UMG that proposed liquidating the company’s entire Spotify stake to help fund the deal.

Source: Universal is selling 50% of its Spotify stake, generating around $1.4 billion

Some Film & TV Companies Imposing “Strict Internal Controls” On Artificial Intelligence

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Some UK film and TV industry organizations are imposing “strict internal controls” around artificial intelligence, according to a new report from training body ScreenSkills. According to interviewees in the report, “some organisations” in the industry are imposing “strict internal controls” on AI, “especially around copyright risk, leading to limited use.” Industry views on generative AI are “cautious,” the report said, also citing “copyright” and “accuracy concerns.”

Source: Some Film & TV Companies Imposing “Strict Internal Controls” On Artificial Intelligence

Spotify’s Song Library Is a Lot Bigger Than We Thought

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Against the backdrop of continued streaming growth – and an avalanche of AI slop – Spotify’s library now contains a staggering 250 million tracks. That eye-popping total came to light during the company’s Q1 2026 earnings call this morning. There’s a lot to unpack in these brief remarks, but one key question jumps out: Is Spotify, which has been almost curiously uninterested in labeling (let alone limiting) AI slop, allowing and capitalizing on “catalog inflation” to bolster its recommendations reach?

Source: Spotify’s Song Library Is a Lot Bigger Than We Thought 

BMG Parent Co. Bertelsmann to Buy Concord in Major Indie Music Merger

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In one of the biggest music mergers in more than a decade, BMG, which represents artists like Jelly Roll and Lainey Wilson, and Concord, owner of songs by Creedence Clearwater Revival, Phil Collins and R.E.M., said on Tuesday (April 28) they reached a definitive agreement to merge companies under the BMG name. The combined company will be 67% owned by German media conglomerate Bertelsmann, BMG’s parent company, and 33% owned by affiliates of Great Mountain Partners.

Source: BMG Parent Co. Bertelsmann to Buy Concord in Major Indie Music Merger

Filmmakers Drop Piracy Liability Lawsuit Against ISP RCN

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A group of independent film companies has dropped its long-running piracy liability lawsuit against U.S. Internet provider RCN. The joint stipulation, filed in a New Jersey federal court, follows the Cox Supreme Court ruling. In addition to dropping a multi-million-dollar damages claim, the requested U.S. pirate site blocking injunction is also off the table.

Source: Filmmakers Drop Piracy Liability Lawsuit Against ISP RCN

Brazil’s Competition Watchdog Opens Google Probe Over Publisher Pay

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Brazil’s competition watchdog, Conselho Administrativo de Defesa Econômica (CADE), unanimously decided Thursday to open a formal investigation into Google’s use of news content, including in its AI Overviews, without compensation to publishers. The investigation will consider whether Google’s scraping of journalistic content to feature in the ‘News’ tab and to produce AI Overviews is an anti-competitive practice and whether outlets that decide to opt-out are being penalized with less visibility.

Source: Brazil’s Competition Watchdog Opens Google Probe Over Publisher Pay

Australia to tax Meta if it doesn’t pay news publishers

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The Australian government has announced plans for a levy on tech giants designed to incentivise them to do commercial deals with publishers. The News Bargaining Incentive (NBI) would require large search and social media services to pay 2.25% on their Australian revenue. This money would be “distributed back to the news media sector”, the government said, to “support the employment and critical work of journalists”.

Source: Australia to tax Meta if it doesn’t pay news publishers

Google Uses Cox Ruling to Kill Last Copyright Claim in Textbook Piracy Lawsuit

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Google is trying to put an end to the copyright liability claim in its textbook piracy battle with several academic publishers. In a motion for partial judgment filed in a New York federal court, Google argues that the recent Supreme Court ruling in Cox v. Sony has effectively killed the copyright liability arguments. That is, unless the publishers can prove Google specifically “induced” infringement or built a service “tailored” exclusively for piracy.

Source: Google Uses Cox Ruling to Kill Last Copyright Claim in Textbook Piracy Lawsuit

Indie label group Futures Music raises $6m as it sets sights on catalog deals

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Futures Music Group, the independent label group founded in 2024 by Neon Gold’s Derek Davies and Avenue A’s Dave Wallace, has raised $6 million in seed funding from a group of music industry investors in the US and UK. Commenting on the investment, Blackburn said: “From an artist perspective, what matters most is having partners with great relationships and smart technology, who also understand the creative and don’t force a rigid system onto it.

Source: Indie label group Futures Music raises $6m as it sets sights on catalog deals

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