Finance

Suno raises over $400 million, pushing valuation to $5.4 billion

Suno CEO and co-founder Mikey Shulman wrote in a blog post on Wednesday (June 3) that, “as with our previous funding rounds,” the Series D saw “participation from some of the best artists, producers, songwriters, and people from across the music industry.” He didn’t name any of them. The funding more than doubles Suno‘s valuation from the $2.45 billion it achieved after closing a $250 million Series C round seven months ago in November.

Source: Suno raises over $400 million, pushing valuation to $5.4 billion

OpenAI not planning to share advertising revenue with publishers

The company behind ChatGPT has no plans to share advertising revenue with publishers, OpenAI’s vice president of media partnerships has confirmed. Varun Shetty was asked at the WAN-IFRA World News Media Congress in Marseille on Tuesday whether they are considering a revenue share model on publisher content being surfaced next to adverts, which are being trialed on ChatGPT. Shetty responded: “Not at this point.”

Source: OpenAI not planning to share advertising revenue with publishers

Library Orgs Urge Big Five to Address Digital Pricing

The organizations urge publishers to negotiate usage-based e-book lending models as well as perpetual-use options. “Our organizations, representing the vast majority of public libraries in the U.S. and Canada, call on the Big Five publishers, as well as platform providers, to come to the table to work with libraries to identify and implement sustainable solutions, no matter the format,” the signatories state.

Source: Library Orgs Urge Big Five to Address Digital Pricing

Spotify and major music DSPs on alert as Canada triples streaming tax to 15%

The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission announced the increase on Thursday (May 21), as part of its implementation of the Online Streaming Act – legislation enacted in 2023 that expanded the regulator’s authority to include online content. The music DSPs are already battling the CRTC‘s original 5% levy – first imposed in 2024 – which required non-Canadian streaming services to contribute 5% of their domestic revenues to funds supporting Canadian content creators.

Source: Spotify and major music DSPs on alert as Canada triples streaming tax to 15%

Shamrock Capital Launches Fourth Content Strategy Fund Since 2015

The Los Angeles-based investment firm focused on media, entertainment and communications has had no trouble lining up takers for its fourth fund for content acquisitions since 2015. That’s the year Shamrock first took aim at acquiring and managing content-related cash flows for discrete rightsholders. Shamrock disclosed Tuesday that its plan to raise $700 million for Shamrock Capital Content Fund IV, L.P. was oversubscribed to the tune of $813 million.

Source: Shamrock Capital Launches Fourth Content Strategy Fund Since 2015

Splice Inks ‘Responsible AI’ Deal with ElevenLabs

Music creation platform Splice has announced an AI deal with ElevenLabs, integrating ElevenLabs’ music models into its ecosystem and music production workflows. Splice CEO Kakul Srivastava emphasized that the partnership focuses on a “second wave of AI” where the human creator comes first, ensuring that any AI products developed will responsibly compensate the original sample creators with every use.

Source: Splice Inks ‘Responsible AI’ Deal with ElevenLabs

Is ‘AI Resistance’ Setting Music Back? WMG’s Robert Kyncl Sees ‘Incredible Value Creation Opportunity,’

Is the music industry leaving value on the table and setting itself back by failing to embrace generative AI? Warner Music head Robert Kyncl believes so. “My point, and I’ve said this publicly multiple times, is that the industry had reacted far too slowly” to the advent of the internet, Kyncl communicated. “It was on its heels, defensive, and because of that, it took really until 2014 for the streaming services to really take off. “There was just a lot of value destruction basically for well over a decade. And it was just caused by very defensive behavior and slow movement forward.”

Source: Is ‘AI Resistance’ Setting Music Back? WMG’s Robert Kyncl Sees ‘Incredible Value Creation Opportunity,’ 

KBRA expects music-royalty backed bonds issuance to fall 25% in 2026

KBRA says in a new report that it has rated more than $12.9 billion in music royalty bonds since 2020 alone. But it expects music ABS issuance to fall by approximately 25% in 2026, dropping from over $3.3 billion in each of the past two years to slightly more than $2.5 billion – “primarily because of continued issuer consolidation.” KBRA noted that consolidation “may have mixed implications for music ABS, potentially improving collateral diversification and servicing scale while reducing issuance activity.”

Source: KBRA expects music-royalty backed bonds issuance to fall 25% in 2026

If you thought the US music industry was concerned about AI, listen to the Chinese

The Chinese music streaming market is facing “industry chaos” due to platforms allowing masses of copyright-infringing, AI-made tracks to fill up their catalogs. That’s the verdict of Tencent Music Entertainment‘s Executive Chairman, Cussion Pang, and CEO, Ross Liang, delivered during TME‘s Q1 earnings call on Tuesday. Their comments represent one of the most direct warnings yet from industry leaders over the damage AI-generated content is doing to streaming subscription businesses in China.

Source: If you thought the US music industry was concerned about AI, listen to the Chinese

SAG-AFTRA Deal Stirs Concerns on Artificial Intelligence and Pensions

SAG-AFTRA leaders are beginning the process of selling their new studio contract to the membership, amid lingering concerns about artificial intelligence and the merger of two pension funds. The deal, unveiled on Monday, allows studios to use synthetic performers only if they bring “significant additional value” to a project. It also requires studios to notify and bargain with the union if they license performances for AI training.

Source: SAG-AFTRA Deal Stirs Concerns on Artificial Intelligence and Pensions

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