ICMP: Music publishing brings in $11.1bn annually across 16 major markets

The International Confederation of Music Publishers (ICMP) has released its first-ever analysis of global music publishing, surveying 16 major music markets. The headline finding? Music publishing brings in a little over $11 billion annually in those markets. The number includes publishers’ direct revenue, plus distributions to publishers and songwriters from collective management organizations (CMOs).

Source: Music publishing brings in $11.1bn annually across 16 major markets, first-ever ICMP survey finds

Perlmutter Seeks Summary Judgement in Copyright Office Battle

Fired Copyright Office head Shira Perlmutter is seeking summary judgement in her lawsuit against the Trump administration.  Upon denying Perlmutter’s restraining order ask, the presiding judge also instructed the parties to “submit a joint proposed briefing schedule” concerning a potential preliminary injunction push on the plaintiff’s end, we reported yesterday. Instead, Perlmutter’s legal team has opted to entreat the court to green-light an “expedited briefing schedule” on the summary judgement front.

Source: Perlmutter Seeks Summary Judgement in Copyright Office Battle

Government AI copyright plan suffers fourth House of Lords defeat

The House of Lords has dealt a fourth defeat to the government over its plans to allow tech companies to use copyrighted material to train their models. The Lords, who are looking for more protections for artists from AI, rejected the latest amendment to the Data (Use and Access) Bill on Monday. Peers backed calls for greater transparency after musicians such as Sir Elton John warned of the threat to creative industries.

Source: Government AI copyright plan suffers fourth House of Lords defeat

Labels in licensing talks with AI music generators Suno and Udio (report)

The major music companies are reportedly in licensing talks with controversial AI music generators Udio and Suno. That’s according to Bloomberg, which reported on Sunday (June 1), citing people familiar with the discussions, that Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group, and Sony Music Entertainment are seeking license fees from the platforms plus “a small amount” of equity in both Suno and Udio.

Source: Labels in licensing talks with AI music generators Suno and Udio (report)

Round Hill, with $1.1bn music portfolio, strikes flurry of catalog acquisitions

The combined value of the transactions is believed to be upwards of $25 million. Round Hill said on Thursday (May 29) that these transactions bring its total catalog value under management back to over USD $1 billion ($1.1bn), following the $468.8 million sale of its London Stock Exchange-listed fund to Concord in 2023. Round Hill continues to manage five private funds following the sale of the UK-listed fund.

Source: Round Hill, with $1.1bn music portfolio, strikes flurry of catalog acquisitions

The Times and Amazon Announce an A.I. Licensing Deal

The New York Times Company has agreed to license its editorial content to Amazon for use in the tech giant’s artificial intelligence platforms, the company said on Thursday. Amazon’s use of editorial content from The Times could extend to the Alexa software found on its smart speakers. Material from The Times will also be used to train Amazon’s proprietary A.I. models, the company said.

Source: New York Times and Amazon Announce AI Licensing Deal

Getty Images Is Pouring Millions of Dollars Into One AI Lawsuit, CEO Says

Getty, one of the world’s largest stock photo companies, alleged that Stability AI illegally scraped more than 12 million copyright-protected photos, videos, and illustrations from its website to train its AI image generator. Now, Getty CEO Craig Peters says that though he believes Getty has a “very strong” case against Stability AI, fighting the AI company in court has been costly.

Source: ‘Extraordinarily Expensive’: Getty Images Is Pouring Millions of Dollars Into One AI Lawsuit, CEO Says

U.S. Govt. Backs Cox in Landmark Supreme Court Battle Over ISP Piracy Liability

The U.S. Solicitor General has urged the Supreme Court to accept Cox Communications’ petition in a landmark piracy liability lawsuit. The USSG argues that ISPs are not necessarily liable for pirating subscribers and warns that the current precedent may lead to disconnections for many innocent subscribers. At the same time, the USSG urged the court to deny a petition from the opposing music companies, which seeks to expand the current liability verdict.

Source: U.S. Govt. Backs Cox in Landmark Supreme Court Battle Over ISP Piracy Liability * TorrentFreak

Netflix’s Reed Hastings Joins Board of AI Company Anthropic, a Rival to OpenAI

Netflix chairman Reed Hastings joined the board of directors of Anthropic, an AI company whose backers include Amazon. “Anthropic is very optimistic about the AI benefits for humanity, but is also very aware of the economic, social and safety challenges,” Hastings said in a statement. “I’m joining Anthropic’s board because I believe in their approach to AI development, and to help humanity progress.”

Source: Netflix’s Reed Hastings Joins Board of AI Company Anthropic, a Rival to OpenAI

Perlmutter’s Lawsuit Is About More Than Just Getting Her Job Back

Perlmutter claims the White House is orchestrating an unprecedented and unconstitutional takeover of a legislative branch agency by installing senior DOJ officials atop both the Library of Congress and the Copyright Office. If allowed, she warns, the move would undermine the Office’s structural independence, compromise the confidentiality of congressional research and copyright deposits, and put congressionally mandated projects in peril—including its fourth and final report on copyright and artificial intelligence.

Source: Perlmutter’s Lawsuit Is About More Than Just Getting Her Job Back

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