New York:
TikTok and Universal announced a new licensing deal on Thursday, ending a months-long dispute that saw popular music removed from the social media platform.
The companies released a joint statement saying the new deal included “better compensation” for artists and songwriters under the Universal Music Group (UMG) umbrella, and would also address concerns about the growth of AI-generated content on TikTok take away.
Universal chairman Sir Lucian Grainge said “this new chapter in our relationship” would “drive innovation in fan engagement while promoting social music monetization.”
The deal “focuses on the value of music, the primacy of human artistry and the well-being of the creative community,” he said.
TikTok's CEO Shou Chew similarly said: “we are committed to working together to drive value, discovery and promotion for all of UMG's incredible artists and songwriters, and deepen their ability to grow, connect and engage to the TikTok community.”
The deal concludes closely watched negotiations that saw a breakdown earlier this year, with the companies – two of the most powerful players in the music and technology industries – publicly criticizing each other as they tried to gain power.
Universal – whose artist roster includes Taylor Swift, Drake and Billie Eilish – has pulled music from the app from all artists associated with its extensive publishing catalog, leaving many concerned about losing the marketing potential TikTok has to offer.
Millions of videos featuring Universal artists were muted on the platform.
But while the stripped-down music is now returning to TikTok, it comes at a moment of uncertainty for the wildly popular video-sharing app, a week after a new US law demands the company divest from its Chinese parent company ByteDance or be shut out of the market. American market.
The app has 170 million users in the United States alone.
Neither Universal nor TikTok have disclosed any financial terms of the deal.
A few weeks ago, the powerful and popular Swift returned some of her music to the app ahead of the release of her most recent album.
It was unclear exactly how she did it, but Swift owns both her own master recordings and her songwriting rights, although the two are controlled by Universal's publishing arm.
In their joint statement, the companies said they were “working quickly to bring music from artists represented by Universal Music Group and songwriters represented by Universal Music Publishing Group back to TikTok in due course.”
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