In today's CMU Daily: Sony Music has sued Marriott over unauthorised use of its music in social media videos. The major label says the hotel chain is guilty of “rampant infringement” of “some of the most popular sound recordings in the world”

One Liners: Jax Jones, Amba Shepherd, Jin Jin deals; .MUSIC x Shufti Pro; MCPS stats; MVT Artist Pledge; new venues in New York and London; Web3 Music Association launch; new releases from Billie Eilish, Alfie Templeman, Future Utopia, DIIV, Umbra Vitae, Orbury Common

Also today: Campaign to celebrate classical music; CISAC says members must “act now” on AI; new research on live industry freelancer experience

Sony sues Marriott over social media posts

Sony Music has sued hotel company Marriott over its use of music in social media posts. 

Recordings released by the major - including hits by Beyonce, Michael Jackson and Harry Styles - have appeared, allegedly without licence, in videos promoting the company's various hotel brands. Some of those videos were created by Marriott marketing teams directly, others by companies operating hotels using Marriott brands under licence, and others by influencers paid by the Marriott company. 

Sony says it has filed its lawsuit “to stop Marriott’s rampant infringement of Sony Music’s valuable copyrights in some of the most popular sound recordings in the world and to recover damages for Marriott’s wilful conduct”. 

Although social media and short form video platforms like Instagram and TikTok have licences with the music industry (short-term bust ups permitting), those licences only usually cover non-commercial use of music against content - so typically videos uploaded by individuals that include music. Brands that use music in videos they upload to these platforms need to negotiate sync deals with relevant record labels and music publishers, unless they are using music that has explicitly been pre-cleared for this sort of commercial use.

Marriott's competitors understand this, says Sony in its lawsuit. “Companies pay substantial sums to use popular Sony Music sound recordings in digital advertising content, including in videos posted by paid influencers, on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and other digital platforms”, it explains.

“Sony Music has licensing agreements with many types of companies including with various hospitality companies that compete with Marriott and with companies in related markets”, it goes on. These agreements “often including the right to use Sony Music’s content on the internet and on social media”. 

The majors have previously gone legal against brands which use music in videos across social platforms in a commercial context without a licence. 

The US courts have generally confirmed that licences are required for brand-created content. However, when it comes to influencer-created content - where the content has been created as part of a deal between an influencer and a brand - there has been a little more debate around the liabilities of the brands which pay the influencers where copyrights have been infringed. That often comes down to the control the brand does or does not have over content created by the influencers they collaborate with.  

In the influencer videos, Sony's lawsuit continues, “Marriott has the right and ability to control the infringement as it has the right to review, approve and/or require removal of Marriott influencer videos. Despite this, Marriott has continued to allow its influencers to post infringing videos”. 

Sony says it first notified Marriott about the infringement back in 2020, and “since that time, Sony Music has continued to give Marriott notice of its continuing infringing conduct on multiple occasions, including most recently on 22 Mar 2024”.

Republic of Music // Label Manager (Brighton Hybrid)

Domino Publishing // Copyright & Royalties Assistant (London Hybrid)

All Flowers Group // Project Manager (London)

Spiritmuse Records // Label Manager (London Hybrid)

Your Culture // Campaign Management Assistant (Brighton)

Horizon is CMU's new weekly newsletter - published each Friday - that brings you a hand-picked selection of early-stage career opportunities from across the music industry.

Whether you're looking for your first job in music or you're ready to take a step up, Horizon is here to help you find your dream job faster.

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ONE LINERS

Music Venue Trust, MCPS, Billie Eilish + more

DEALS

Armada Music’s BEAT Music Fund has announced two deals. It has acquired the artist shares and songwriter royalties of Jax Jones, and the artist shares on popular tracks by Amba Shepherd. “We are honoured to be entrusted with a portion of Jax Jones’ incredible catalogue and several of Amba Shepherd’s most notable tracks and look forward to taking their work to exciting new places”, says Armada CEO Maykel Piron. 

Concord Music Publishing has signed songwriter Jin Jin, who has worked with artists including Raye, Jess Glynne and David Guetta. “There are few songwriters that have made as much of an impact as Jin Jin in the last decade”, says EVP Worldwide A&R Kim Frankiewicz. “Her work ethic, creativity and imagination are simply extraordinary. We are privileged to have her partner with us for the next chapter of her remarkable career”.

DIGITAL 

Top level domain company .MUSIC and global identity verification provider Shufti Pro have partnered to offer a new identity verification service for music creators, professionals and businesses. It aims to counter threats posed by AI-powered musical impersonation, deepfakes and bots. "Our partnership with .MUSIC marks a pivotal moment for global identity verification in the music industry”, says Shufti Pro CEO Patrick Cox. "We are excited to set a new industry standard for identity authentication for artists, bands, industry professionals, organisations and other members of the global music community”.

PUBLISHING

The UK’s mechanical royalties collecting society MCPS distributed £204.3 million to its members in 2023 - an 8.5% increase year-on-year and 43% in the last five years. In the last five years it has also added 9000 new members - up 32% - to bring the total membership up to 37,000.

LIVE BUSINESS 

The Music Venue Trust has launched new campaign The Artist Pledge, which sees artists commit to support grassroots venues by adding a levy to their ticket prices if and when they reach the point in their careers where they are playing arena venues. “We are asking artists today to stand with all of us in the grassroots sector as a show of solidarity”, says MVT Campaign & Communications lead Toni Coe-Brooker. “We are asking for a commitment that when you reach a point in your career when you can insist on change, you will demand that change”. Find out more here. 

Broadwick Live and TCE Presents have announced their first venue under a partnership announced earlier this year. Brooklyn Storehouse will open later this month, housed in the Brooklyn Navy Yard. “We are committed to repurposing industrial spaces in an unexpected way that honours their past and creates lasting value for local areas and communities”, says Luke Huxham, Director of Development & Place at Broadwick Group. “Brooklyn Storehouse is an impressive hybrid home for culture”.

A new 300 capacity outdoor venue Camden Courtyard is opening in London on 4 Jul, run by the owners of the nearby Electric Ballroom. “The venue will offer something new for Camden, an area that has surprisingly few open-air locations for drinking, dining and dancing”, says owner of both venues Kate Fuller. “We’re working with a great selection of forward thinking promoters, DJs and food and drink brands and we can’t wait to welcome new faces and regulars alike”. 

INDUSTRY ORGANISATIONS 

What does the music industry need more than anything? That’s right, another trade body! So, let’s all welcome The Web3 Music Association. Led by CEO Sergio Mottola and Vice President Charlie Rapino, it aims to facilitate research and development into new technologies. “Our goal is to cultivate a fertile ground for discussion, comprehension, and practical application of advanced technologies”, says Mottola. “We aim to ensure the music industry is not only a participant in the digital age but a driving force behind it. Our goal is to elevate the worries around the current impact advanced technologies - such as AI - are having on the industry”.

RELEASES

Billie Eilish has released an extended version of ‘L’Amour De Ma Vie’ from her new album ‘Hit Me Hard And Soft’. 

Alfie Templeman has released new single ‘Beckham’. His second album ‘Radiosoul’ is out on 7 Jun. 

Fraser T Smith has released a new single in his Future Utopia guise, ‘Stars Align’. New album ‘Django’s High’ is set for release on 12 Jul. 

DIIV have released their latest single ‘Raining On Your Pillow’. New album ‘Frog In Boiling Water’ is out this Friday. 

Umbra Vitae have share new single ‘Anti-Spirit Machine’. Their latest album ‘Light Of Death’ is out on 7 Jun. 

Orbury Common have released new single ‘Pale Faith’. Their debut album ‘Sylvan Chute’ is out on 7 Jun.

British public invited to share what classical music means to them

The Association Of British Orchestras has launched a new campaign called #MusicThatMovesYou, calling on the British public to share what classical music means to them. Alongside this, the organisation has published the results of a new study which found that 65% of people believe that classical music is under-appreciated today.

The survey of 2000 UK adults also found that 74% felt that orchestras are a vital part of the UK’s cultural heritage. Meanwhile, 71% felt that classical music amplifies key moments in life, such as weddings, funerals, sporting events and national ceremonies - rising to 73% among 18-34 year olds.

“It is truly heartening to see how much classical music matters to the British public”, says ABO Chair Sophie Lewis. “Our survey showed how people turn to classical music in so many different settings, not only for pure enjoyment, but for reflection, mindfulness and to feel a powerful sense of connection – whether that’s a highly personal sense of emotion, or to share life’s special moments with those around them”.

The new three year #MusicThatMovesYou campaign invites people to share a piece of classical music on social media that is important to them and their lives. 

“Everyone has their favourite music that transports them to a landmark moment in their life”, explains Lewis. “We want to start a conversation open to everyone - both enthusiasts and casual listeners of classical music - to introduce one another to the music that moves them. We want to spark engagement and excitement for us all to celebrate the music that we can be proud of in Britain as a part of our cultural heritage, showcased by our members on a world class level”.

The campaign is supported by Classic FM, Classical Music Magazine, LIVE, UK Music, the Musicians’ Union and the Independent Society Of Musicians. Further details of the campaign, including a number of events, are set to be announced in the coming months.

CISAC annual report provides updates on AI campaigns and ISWC refinements

CISAC - the global organisation for song right collecting societies - has published its annual report setting out its lobbying priorities and providing updates on its other projects.

Unsurprisingly, the challenges and opportunities presented by AI are a key focus, but there are also updates on CISAC’s work around song data.

The organisation’s President Björn Ulvaeus kicks off the AI conversation at the start of the report, noting that - at CISAC’s General Assembly in Mexico last year - he discussed how AI “will bring the biggest revolution the creative sector has seen”.

The conclusion of the General Assembly, he adds, was that “we must act now. We should not sit on our hands waiting to see how things evolve. We cannot let tech companies and policy makers sit at the decision-making tables while the creators are left outside the room”.

“Since then”, he continues, “I’m pleased to say a lot has happened. We have taken our messages to regulators. We have sat with world leaders. We have issued many submissions in national legislatures”.

Through that work, he goes on, three core principles have emerged: the need for creators to consent to the use of their work by AI companies, the need for creators to be fairly remunerated, and the need for AI companies to be fully transparent about what training data they use.

There’s a long way to go to persuade all AI companies to embrace those principles of course, but Ulvaeus says there has been some progress. “Europe, as so often the standard-bearer for creators’ rights, has adopted the EU AI Act, something I and CISAC’s Vice-Presidents engaged in actively”, he says.

“Its provisions on transparency are a welcome step that can serve as a model for other territories”, he goes on. “And there will be a lot more legislative activity in the coming months, with CISAC and its global network uniquely placed to lead the campaign”.

Beyond its campaigning work, CISAC also controls many of the key data standards and systems on the songs side of the music business. That includes CISnet, which allows collecting societies to share data, and the ISWC that is used to identify individual songs. There have been developments on both those things over the last year.

CISnet used to be owned by a third party entity, but last year ownership moved to CISAC itself. “The transfer gives CISAC full control over the running of the network and enables future adaptation of CISnet to meet societies’ changing business needs”, the annual report states. 

On the ISWC front, a key objective in recent years has been getting the song codes issued faster and having them more readily available. That’s linked to moves to try to get ISWCs into the digital supply chain before new recordings go live on the platforms - so that both the recording and the song are identified, by the ISRC and ISWC respectively. 

“Linking the two identifiers at the time of release would be a major improvement in the system and CISAC is working in collaboration with several societies to advance towards this objective”, the report states. That includes UK society PRS which, the report adds, has worked with CISAC to launch a ‘proof of concept’ project which “aims to give music uploaders a simplified way to include an ISWC, alongside the existing data they already provide to streaming services”.

“After the success of the project”, the report says, “CISAC is now implementing the service in the ISWC system, involving several societies, publishers and labels. Bringing together the ISWC and ISRC at the point of release of a song has a huge potential for creators and rightsholders and would be a giant leap forward for the industry, as a whole”.

Setlist Podcast: Music publishers go to war with Spotify

In this week's Setlist Podcast: Chris Cooke and Andy Malt discuss the battle between music publishers and Spotify over it’s plans to reclassify its subscriptions as bundles of music, audiobooks and podcasts, and commercial media companies hit out at the BBC’s plan to sell advertising on its podcasts.

🎧 Click here to listen - or search for 'Setlist Podcast'

Results of survey on live music industry freelancers published

UK live music business trade body LIVE has published the results of a study into the experience of freelancers in the industry. The majority felt that it’s a good sector for freelancers to operate in and are optimistic about the future. However, the survey did uncover some issues, including with job security and last minute cancellation of work.

“Freelancers are crucial to the success of the live music ecosystem and our industry relies on them to deliver unforgettable experiences for fans”, says LIVE CEO Jon Collins, launching a report based on the results, ‘Powered By Freelancers - Live Music Edition 2024’. He added that the survey provides “invaluable insight into the freelance experience”.

A total of 1281 freelancers contributed to the survey, with 87% saying that freelancing was their primary source of income. Asked if live music is a great industry for freelancers to work in, 73% said it is, with over 60% saying that they felt optimistic about the future.

While 59% said that there are enough freelance jobs available, 56% said that they find it difficult to access these roles. More difficulty in finding work was reported among younger people, women and non-binary respondents - a common theme across the results, says LIVE.

Issues with job security once roles had been secured were also highlighted. Less than half of respondents had signed contracts before starting roles and around 48% had seen jobs cancelled with less than a week’s notice. 

“Much in the report is great to see, not least the resoundingly positive response from people when asked if ours is a great industry to be in”, says Collins. “Of course, reports like this will always highlight opportunities for improvement and we will be taking all of these learnings and funnelling them into the work of our LIVE Workforce group, where industry experts alongside ED&I and workforce specialists work towards objectives that positively impact the current and future workforce of our industry”.