Red Hot Chili Peppers Ink $300 Million-Plus Deal With Warner Music to Sell Catalog

The Red Hot Chili Peppers sold the rights to their recorded catalog to Warner Music Group in a deal worth more than $300 million, sources familiar with the matter tell The Hollywood Reporter, with WMG acquiring the catalog through the company’s joint venture with Bain Capital. WMG first announced its $1.2 billion joint venture catalog acquisition vehicle with Bain last July and reported in its May 7 earnings report that they’d spent $650 million on catalogs since the JV’s launch,

Source: Red Hot Chili Peppers Ink $300 Million-Plus Deal With Warner Music to Sell Catalog

USC to NYU: AI’s Stealth Film School Takeover Has Begun

The world of AI entertainment is getting thornier and more divided with each passing day. The Oscars represent a visible flashpoint, but more consequential AI battles are being fought off-camera — including at elite film schools and cultural institutions. From USC to NYU’s Tisch to CalArts, AI is being added to grants, software access and curriculum design, often in direct partnership with the companies building AI tools — including Adobe, Google and Runway, among others.

Source: USC to NYU: AI’s Stealth Film School Takeover Has Begun

Tencent Music took down over 250,000 songs amid ’emerging AI risks’

Tencent Music Entertainment, China’s largest music streaming service provider, says it took down more than 250,000 policy-violating songs and reviewed over 600,000 cases involving “high-risk copyright content” across its platforms last year. The figures come as TME said it bolstered compliance and risk management across key areas in 2025, including copyright licensing, emerging AI risks, and its overseas business expansion.

Source: Tencent Music took down over 250,000 songs amid ’emerging AI risks’

The Evolution of AI Music Creation in the Digital Age

Artificial intelligence has significantly changed how music is produced and distributed. Traditionally, creating music required years of training, access to expensive equipment, and advanced technical skills. Today, AI-driven platforms allow users to generate melodies, beats, and harmonies within minutes. One of the most exciting innovations in this space is the ability to convert ideas directly from text to song generation systems. 

Source: The Evolution of AI Music Creation in the Digital Age

Believe partners with Google to offer AI music creation tool Flow Music to its artists

Believe is partnering with Google to offer the tech giant’s AI music creation platform, Google Flow Music, to artists across Believe and TuneCore. Under the deal, Believe will offer Flow Music — the Google Labs-housed AI music tool formerly known as ProducerAI — to its artists, producers and songwriters as what the companies describe as a “creative collaborator.” Google says that Flow Music can help artists with lyrics, experimenting with melodies or genres, and creating new instruments.

Source: Believe partners with Google to offer AI music creation tool Flow Music to its artists

Warner Music Group and Paramount strike deal for theatrical films based on WMG artists

Paramount Pictures and Warner Music Group have announced a multi-year, first-look deal for theatrical films. The partnership will see the companies develop movies drawing on the lives and music of WMG‘s roster of artists and songwriters. Robert Kyncl, CEO of Warner Music Group, said: “This collaboration with Paramount unites two forward-looking and innovative companies, and together we’re taking a fresh approach to the space.”

Source: Warner Music Group and Paramount strike deal for theatrical films based on WMG artists

What the EU AI Omnibus Deal Changes for the AI Act and What Lies Ahead

Among the more substantial changes, the AI Omnibus introduces a new ban on “nudifier tools.” This was not part of the Commission’s original proposal and is already partially addressed through the Digital Services Act, the Directive on Violence Against Women, and national criminal law. However, the wave of sexual deepfakes generated by Grok last winter — involving millions of cases — prompted both Parliament and Member States to intervene directly at the level of AI models themselves.

Source: What the EU AI Omnibus Deal Changes for the AI Act and What Lies Ahead

Sony’s failed war against Internet piracy may doom other copyright lawsuits

Sony and other major record labels recently suffered a thorough defeat at the Supreme Court in their attempt to make Internet service providers pay huge financial penalties for their customers’ copyright infringement. Sony’s loss is certain to have wide-ranging effects on copyright lawsuits, offering protection for ISPs, their customers, and potentially other technology companies whose services can be used for both legal and illegal purposes.

Source: Sony’s failed war against Internet piracy may doom other copyright lawsuits

The $1.4 Billion Question: Will UMG Actually Share Its Spotify Stock Windfall With Artists?

Late last month, Universal Music Group (UMG) confirmed plans to sell 50% of its Spotify stock – while claiming that “artists will share in the proceeds.” But pressing questions remain about what this possible distribution will look like in practice. Those questions are taking center stage now that the dust has settled from UMG’s Spotify stock sale disclosure. As reported, Universal Music brass unveiled the divestment after Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square floated the idea of offloading the shares under a massive takeover proposal.

Source: The $1.4 Billion Question: Will UMG Actually Share Its Spotify Stock Windfall With Artists?

‘Avatar’ Suit Focuses on Hot Topic in A.I. Age: A Character’s Face

An actress accused the director James Cameron of stealing her likeness to create an “Avatar” character in a lawsuit filed on Tuesday in California — a case that reflects a core fear among Hollywood performers in the artificial intelligence age: losing control of their own faces. The actress, Q’orianka Kilcher, also sued Disney, which controls the multibillion-dollar “Avatar” franchise, which started in 2009.

Source: ‘Avatar’ Suit Focuses on Hot Topic in A.I. Age: A Character’s Face

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