Finance

People Inc. forges AI licensing deal with Microsoft as Google traffic drops 

People Inc., one of the largest media publishers in the U.S., has signed an AI licensing deal with Microsoft. The media giant (formerly known as Dotdash Meredith) made the announcement Tuesday as a part of parent company IAC’s third-quarter earnings. People Inc. CEO Neil Vogel described the new marketplace as “essentially a pay-per-use market where AI players directly can compensate publishers for use of their content on, sort of like an ‘a la carte’ basis.”

Source: People Inc. forges AI licensing deal with Microsoft as Google traffic drops | TechCrunch

Cinq Music parent company rebrands, raises $230m in fresh funding via GoDigital

GoDigital has confirmed that the funding was led by Bank of America, with participation from Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, East West Bank, First Horizon, Fifth Third, and Flag Star. The company said on Monday (November 3) that the funding brings its total capital raised to date to over USD $1 billion. The funding news arrives alongside a revamp of the GoDigital brand.

Source: Cinq Music parent company rebrands, raises $230m in fresh funding via new GoDigital Music division

Irving Azoff, MAC Demand ‘Creative Control, Fair Compensation’

The Music Artists Coalition responds to Universal Music Group’s partnership with AI platform Udio, demanding clarity and compensation. “Every technological advance offers opportunity, but we have to make sure it doesn’t come at the expense of the people who actually create the music—artists and songwriters,” said Irving Azoff, board member and founder of MAC. “We’ve seen this before—everyone talks about ‘partnership,’ but artists end up on the sidelines with scraps.”

Source: Irving Azoff, MAC Demand ‘Creative Control, Fair Compensation’

Big Tech Is Spending More Than Ever on AI and It’s Still Not Enough

Silicon Valley’s biggest companies are already planning to pour $400 billion into artificial intelligence efforts this year. They all say it’s nowhere near enough. “We’ve been short [on computing power] now for many quarters. I thought we were going to catch up. We are not. Demand is increasing,” said Amy Hood, Microsoft’s chief financial officer. “When you see these kinds of demand signals and we know we’re behind, we do need to spend.”

Source: Big Tech Is Spending More Than Ever on AI and It’s Still Not Enough

Spotify raises UK and Switzerland Premium prices as analysts see US hike by early 2026

Spotify is raising subscription prices in the UK for the second time in 18 months. The company is also increasing the price of its Premium plans in Switzerland. In the UK, the music streaming giant will be increasing its Premium individual monthly plan to £12.99from £11.99. The 8.3% increase marks the second time in 18 months that the company has raised UK prices by £1. The previous adjustment took effect in April 2024.

Source: Spotify raises UK and Switzerland Premium prices again as analysts see US hike by early 2026

WGA Says Warner Bros. Merger Would Be a ‘Disaster’ for Writers

The Writers Guild of America came out swinging on Thursday against a merger between Warner Bros. and any other studio, saying such consolidation would be a “disaster” for writers. “Merger after merger in the media industry has harmed workers, diminished competition and free speech, and wasted hundreds of billions of dollars better invested in organic growth,” the WGA East and West said in a statement Thursday.

Source: WGA Says Warner Bros. Merger Would Be a ‘Disaster’ for Writers

Wonder Studios, backed by OpenAI, DeepMind execs, raised $12M 

London-based AI creative studio Wonder Studios has raised $12 million in seed funding to scale production amid a push to bring AI-generated content into the entertainment industry. The round was led by Atomico, alongside existing investors LocalGlobe and Blackbird, and builds on Wonder’s pre-seed investment, which included executives from ElevenLabs, Google DeepMind, and OpenAI.

Source: Wonder Studios, backed by OpenAI, DeepMind execs, raised $12M to bring AI content to Hollywood  | TechCrunch

YouTube paid out $8B to the music industry in 12 months

YouTube has paid more than $8 billion to the music industry in the 12 months between July 2024 and July 2025, the company announced on Thursday. “Today’s $8 billion payout is a testament to the fact that the twin engine of ads and subscriptions is firing on all cylinders,” said YouTube’s Global Head of Music Lyor Cohen in a statement.

Source: YouTube paid out $8B to the music industry in 12 months | TechCrunch

Milk & Honey Launches Label With Songwriter-Friendly Royalty Model

The new Los Angeles-based label will focus on pop and dance music but differs from most record companies in that it will pay royalty points — as high as double digits — to songwriters who contribute songs to projects. “Bring us your songs that you might have sent to another label where you wouldn’t be given points. We want to be in business with you” said Milk & Honey’s president/founder Lucas Keller in a statement. The royalty will come out of Milk & Honey’s revenue share.

Source: Milk & Honey Launches Label With Songwriter-Friendly Royalty Model: ‘Bring Us Your Songs’

AI Contract Platform Clearnote Aims to End Deal Delays: ‘The System Is Outdated’

Clearnote, which has just launched in beta, uses an AI-guided, TurboTax-style questionnaire covering royalties and rights and then automatically generates the correct agreement with clauses tailored to the user’s needs. Users can also load in artist and producer profiles and let Clearnote fill in more than a dozen contract fields with one click.

Source: AI Contract Platform Clearnote Aims to End Deal Delays: ‘The System Is Outdated’

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