In today's CMU Daily: Spotify has been sued by collecting society the MLC as the audiobooks bundling dispute between the US music industry hots up even more. At the same time activist songwriter George Johnson has also filed a formal complaint with the US Copyright Royalty Board

One Liners: Sony Music Publishing appointment; Eco-friendly vinyl survey; Keeley Forsyth AV show premiere; new releases from Girls Aloud, Saweetie, The Script, Peggy Gou, Poppy Ajudha, Serj Tankian, Peter Murphy, Girl Ultra, Flowerovlove, Florrie, Marika Takeuchi

Also today: Sony Music tells 700 AI companies to get their hands off its music; Viagogo agrees to make website changes in Europe

Plus: Avril Lavigne denies rumours that she has been dead since 2003, andour picks of what to see at The Great Escape today and tomorrow

The MLC is suing Spotify over audiobook bundling 

US collecting society the MLC is suing Spotify over its sneaky audiobook bundling trick, while activist songwriter George Johnson has filed a formal complaint with the US Copyright Royalty Board about the same issue.

The MLC says that Spotify can't simply reclassify its main premium product as a ‘bundle’ just because it now has a standalone audiobooks product. Even if premium also includes some audiobooks access, the premium product hasn't actually changed. 

The MLC administers the compulsory blanket licence that streaming services utilise on the songs side in the US. The terms of the licence are reviewed by the Copyright Royalty Board every five years and include provisions covering services that bundle music with other content.

“Spotify’s position does not comply with applicable law and regulations”, the society said in a statement alongside its lawsuit. The MLC says that it has the “statutory authority” to take action against Spotify on the matter. It is suing, it says, in order to ensure that the streaming service meets its obligations under the licence and “pays all royalties due from its use of songs on premium plans”.

The National Music Publishers Association has welcomed the MLC’s legal action against Spotify, which should come as no surprise. As the dispute has escalated in recent weeks the NMPA has been scathing about Spotify’s attempt, via the bundle, to reduce royalties to songwriters and publishers. NPMA CEO David Israelite says, “We applaud the MLC for standing up for songwriters and not letting Spotify get away with its latest trick to underpay creators”.

“The MLC is tasked with challenging services who falsely report royalties”, he continued, adding, “The lawsuit sends a clear message that platforms cannot improperly manipulate usage. We strongly support the MLC and will continue to pursue justice”. 

Spotify added fifteen hours of audiobook access to its main premium subscription package last year. It then launched a standalone audiobooks subscription product in March, and promptly said that - because the main premium subscription now combined music and audiobooks - it was a bundle. Under the terms of the compulsory licence, that allows it to significantly cut its payments to publishers and writers. 

The MLC's lawsuit explains that the compulsory licence sets out rules for how streaming services should report revenue when music is sold as a bundle with “non-music products or services”, like audiobooks (just for example). Under those rules, mechanical royalties on a bundle are only paid on “the pro-rata portion of the music-related component” of the subscription.

The basis of the MLC lawsuit is that Spotify has artificially reshuffled its subscription products in a cynical bid to cut its payments to the songwriters and publishers in the US.

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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.

👉 Click through to see the current selection.

ONE LINERS

Saweetie, Key Production, The Script + more

APPOINTMENTS

Sony Music Publishing has promoted Nasra Artan to the new position of Head Of International A&R. “I am excited to be stepping into this new role at SMP”, she says. “My passion for creative collaboration runs deep, and I look forward to working closely with our A&R teams to elevate the careers of our songwriters internationally”.

RETAIL

A new survey conducted by Key Production has found that 77% of vinyl buyers would be happy to pay more for a product with a reduced environmental impact. Meanwhile, 69% said they would be likely to buy more records if they were shown to be more environmentally friendly than the current standard. “What we’re seeing is a consumer shift towards a demand for physical music made with reduced impact”, says John Service, Strategy And Sustainability Director at Key Production. “Vinyl can be made more sustainably with new compounds which replace the fossil-fuel ingredients, and packaging can be made with completely recycled materials”.

GIGS & FESTIVALS

Keeley Forsyth has announced that she will premiere her new AV show at the ICA in London on 23 May. Tickets are available now. 

RELEASES

To mark the opening of their new arena tour, Girls Aloud have released ‘The Whole Damn Show Megamix’ - 27 tracks squashed together by The Alias. 

Saweetie has released new single ‘Nani’. 

Newly signed to BMG, The Script have announced that they will release their new album ‘Satellites’ on 16 Aug. UK and Ireland live dates will follow in November. Out now is new single ’Both Ways’. 

Peggy Gou has released new single ‘Lobster Telephone’. Her debut album ‘I Hear You’ is out on 7 Jun.

Poppy Ajudha has released new single ‘Ready’. 

Serj Tankian has released new single ‘AF Day’ - a song originally written for System Of A Down around 25 years ago. It’s taken from a new EP called ‘Foundations’ that will be released this autumn.

Bauhaus frontman Peter Murphy has launched new label Silver Shade to put out his own live albums and solo reissues. The first two releases will be ‘Peter Live Vol One - Covers’ and ‘Peter Live Vol Two - The Blender Theater NYC 2008’ on 21 Jun. From the first is this cover of Nine Inch Nails’ ‘Hurt’ featuring Trent Reznor on piano. 

Girl Ultra has released new single ‘Blu’. The track is taken from new EP ‘Blush’, which is out on 12 Jul. 

Flowerovlove has released new single ‘Boys’. 

Florrie has released new single ‘Never Far Away From Paradise’. Her debut album ‘The Lost Ones’ is out on 14 Jun. 

Marika Takeuchi has released new single ‘Blue Grotto’. Her new album ‘Wandering Notes’ is out on 28 Jun.

Sony Music tells 700+ AI companies to respect its copyrights 

Sony Music has sent a stern letter to more than 700 AI companies basically telling them to stop stealing its music. If you want to train a generative AI model using any songs, recordings or other creative assets owned or controlled by the music company, you need to get permission first. Don't be trying to find any copyright loopholes that might offer a free ride.

Or, if you'd like that in legal speak, here’s what Sony actually says in its ‘declaration of AI training opt out’ in a sentence so long and dense, you'll need at least two AIs to help you process it. 

“Sony Music Group’s affiliates, Sony Music Publishing and Sony Music Entertainment, on behalf of themselves and their wholly owned or controlled affiliates, are making this affirmative, public declaration confirming that, except as specifically and explicitly authorised by either SME or SMP, as the case may be, each of them expressly prohibits and opts out of any text or data mining, web scraping or similar reproductions, extractions or uses of any SME and/or SMP content (including, without limitation, musical compositions, lyrics, audio recordings, audiovisual recordings, artwork, images, data, etc) for any purposes, including in relation to training, developing or commercialising any AI system, and by any means, including by bots, scrapers or other automated processes, in each case to the full extent permitted by applicable law in all relevant jurisdictions”. 

If it helps, here is a summary courtesy ChatGPT.  “This statement from Sony Music Group, through its divisions Sony Music Publishing (SMP) and Sony Music Entertainment (SME), declares a clear restriction against unauthorised use of their content for text and data mining, web scraping, and other similar activities. This includes any usage related to training, developing, or commercialising artificial intelligence systems, by any automated methods. They're setting legal boundaries to protect their copyrighted content, such as music, lyrics, images, and other related data, from being exploited without explicit permission. This applies globally, as far as the laws in each jurisdiction allow”.

The music industry is adamant that AI companies need permission to use any existing music as part of their training processes. However, many AI companies argue that training is covered by data mining copyright exceptions in at least some countries or the principle of fair use in the US, meaning that no permission is queried. 

European law includes one of those copyright exceptions for data mining, but with an opt-out or - to use the technical term - a ‘right to reserve’, which allows copyright owners to exclude their content from the exception.

The music industry actually argues that the EU data mining exception doesn't apply to commercial AI training anyway. Nevertheless, many record labels, music publishers and collecting societies have formally reserved their rights. 

On the publishing side, the International Confederation Of Music Publishers recently launched a portal for storing details of publishers who have formally opted-out of the European data mining exception.

Sony Music's new declaration restates the major's reservation of rights, in the EU and more generally.

As well as noting its legal stance, Sony's letter is keen to stress that it is no luddite when it comes to all things AI. “SMG has been embracing the potential for responsibly produced AI to be used as a creative tool, revolutionising the ways songwriters and recording artists create music”, it says. “We support artists and songwriters taking the lead in embracing new technologies in support of their art”. 

The music industry is pretty much united when it comes to the copyright obligations of AI companies. However, within the industry many artists and songwriters have also been calling on their labels and publishers to likewise seek consent before including their music in any licensing deals with the music industry.

Approved: Great Escape showcases - Friday and Saturday

We’re into day two of The Great Escape in Brighton, and there are still a whole lot of shows to come in venues around the city. Here we’ve pulled together some of our top picks for artists playing on Friday and Saturday - all artists we love and know will put on a great show. Check them out if you’re there, and click through to read our full Approved articles on each.

Ugly

With a sound that’s as sticky as a Wetherspoons carpet, Ugly radiate good energy with jangly, shimmering guitar melodies and a King Krule-esque croon. 

One Church, Friday 7.15pm

DUST, Saturday 3pm

Frost Children

Frost Children channel a wide array of sounds, from big room DJs to early 2000s emo. Even if you can get your head around that, there’s still a long way to go before you can adequately describe their music. Best to just listen to it, starting with one of their standout tracks, ‘Flatline’.

The Arch, Friday 9pm

Canty

Set to release his new EP ‘hahahahahahahahahahahahaha’ later this month, Canty recently put out the first track from it, ‘hahaha’. As neither name suggests, the song is a downbeat ode to accepting your fate but hoping it will be a good one.

Prince Albert, Friday 8.30pm

Emmeline

Originally starting out as a spoken word artist, performing at poetry nights, Emmeline came to feel that she was actually performing lyrics that had no music. Later taken under the wing of producer Fraser T Smith, she was transformed into a rapper. 

Green Door Store, Friday 8.15pm

King Hannah

King Hannah are set to release their second album ‘Big Swimmer’ at the end of this month, the follow up to their brilliant 2022 debut ‘I’m Not Sorry, I Was Just Being Me’. Their excellent live show is not to be missed. 

Patterns Upstairs, Saturday 2.30pm

Players, Saturday 9.30pm

Elisabeth Elektra

Since her 2020 debut album ‘Mercurial’, Elisabeth Elektra’s sound has shifted to something heavier, as shown on her Broken Promises EP last year, which was produced by Jonny Scott of Chvrches and features guitars from Mogwai’s Stuart Braithwaite.

Three Wise Cats, Saturday 3.20pm

Tendertwin

Singer-songwriter Tendertwin recently released ‘Asking’, the first track from her debut EP ‘Ship Argo’, which is out in July. Using sudden and unexpected musical twists and turns, she rides the emotional wave of the song’s lyrics that balance despair and resilience.

Waterbear Venue, Saturday 12.30pm

O.

One of the absolute best acts we caught at last year’s Great Escape, instrumental duo O. create dance music using drums, saxophone and little else. Their debut album ‘WeirdOs’ is out this summer, but if you can see them in the flesh, you absolutely should. 

Charles Street Tap, Friday 11.15pm

Viagogo will ditch FOMO panic pop-ups after EU pressure

Anti-ticket touting campaigners have welcomed an announcement from the European Commission that Viagogo, the ticket touting - or “ticket resale” - platform has committed to make some changes to its website. But only in the European Union.

In a statement yesterday, the EC said that Viagogo “has committed to better inform consumers on the conditions under which tickets are resold and to stop pressuring consumers with excessive countdown messages”. 

The EU’s Consumer Protection Cooperation Network began talks with Viagogo back in 2021. This came after the EC and national consumer authorities around Europe received various complaints. These included criticisms over the lack of transparency on the ticket resale platform and the tactics it employed to motivate a quick purchase. Similar complaints have been made in countries across the world, with Viagogo generally only taking action to address issues when it has been forced to do so by regulators.

Although talks with Viagogo have been ongoing for a while at an EU level, the platform has had extra legal obligations to meet in Europe since the passing of the Digital Services Act.

Under the new agreement covered by the EC announcement, Viagogo will also have to clearly identify if a customer is buying from a professional trader - rather than another punter shifting a ticket they can’t use - as well as stating delivery fees upfront where there is only one delivery option. Viagogo has also been told it needs to amend terms regarding the company’s guarantee scheme and give better information about how customers can pursue complaints.

Pan-European organisation FEAT, which has campaigned for better regulation of ticket touting in Europe, has welcomed the agreement.

Its director Sam Shemtob says: “FEAT has been calling for better enforcement for rogue ticket resale marketplaces for five years. This is the EU’s first coordinated action and introduces some of the most far-reaching consumer protection for European consumers to date”. 

“The changes will also prove incredibly useful in promoters’ efforts to curtail ticket touting”, he adds. “We expect this will save lots of time and money in legal battles, which the live performance sector can ill afford”.

The EC’s statement concludes, “The Consumer Protection Cooperation Network will now actively monitor how Viagogo implements its commitments. If Viagogo does not implement the commitments properly within the agreed timeframe, or if it fails to address the remaining concerns raised by the CPC Network, national consumer authorities may decide to take measures to enforce compliance, including sanctions”.

And Finally! Avril Lavigne denies being a clone, says rumours of her death are “so dumb”

Avril Lavigne was in the news this week. Or was she? Yes, she was. That’s just an example of how easy it is to start a conspiracy theory. You were taken in for a moment, weren’t you? Well, no, probably not. You were probably just confused. But that’s what this is all about - the longstanding conspiracy theory that Avril Lavigne died in 2003.

This story is one that rears its head every couple of years and gains new traction. Usually when a journalist decides to ask Lavigne if it’s true that she’s dead. To date, she has always denied it - including on a new episode of the ‘Call Her Daddy’ podcast, where Lavigne said the theory about her demise is “a good one” but also “so dumb”.

It’s possible that you’re not aware of this conspiracy theory - or that the details have slipped your mind. So let’s have a recap, because even if you do know about it, it’s always fun to refresh your memory. Like she says, it’s a good one.