TikTok Fails to Secure Extension, Just Lost Major Music Artists Like Taylor Swift, Drake, Lady Gaga
If you’re an NFL fan who is sick to death of Taylor Swift coverage… maybe it’s time to hop on TikTok?
Just kidding, nobody should use TikTok — especially not longshot presidential candidates — but if you’re already on the ubiquitous social media platform, you may notice a stark lack of Taylor Swift music on it now.
And Lady Gaga music. And Drake music. And Olivia Rodrigo music.
That’s because Universal Music Group, the massive multinational music corporation that owns the music catalogs of a number of prominent artists, failed to reach a new licensing agreement with TikTok.
The existing licensing agreement expired on Wednesday, according to The Verge.
And just in case you were wondering, yes, this appears to have been a rather toxic divorce.
“The terms of our relationship with TikTok are set by contract, which expires January 31, 2024,” Universal Music Group wrote in an open letter. “In our contract renewal discussions, we have been pressing them on three critical issues—appropriate compensation for our artists and songwriters, protecting human artists from the harmful effects of AI, and online safety for TikTok’s users.”
UMG would continue: “With respect to the issue of artist and songwriter compensation, TikTok proposed paying our artists and songwriters at a rate that is a fraction of the rate that similarly situated major social platforms pay.
“Today, as an indication of how little TikTok compensates artists and songwriters, despite its massive and growing user base, rapidly rising advertising revenue and increasing reliance on music-based content, TikTok accounts for only about 1% of our total revenue.”
UMG would further accuse TikTok of “trying to build a music-based business, without paying fair value for the music.”
The most aggressive accusation from UMG came when the massive music group effectively accused TikTok of trying to bully its way to a more favorable deal.
“But when we proposed that TikTok takes similar steps as our other platform partners to try to address these issues, it responded first with indifference, and then with intimidation,” UMG wrote. “As our negotiations continued, TikTok attempted to bully us into accepting a deal worth less than the previous deal, far less than fair market value and not reflective of their exponential growth.
“How did it try to intimidate us? By selectively removing the music of certain of our developing artists, while keeping on the platform our audience-driving global stars.
“TikTok’s tactics are obvious: use its platform power to hurt vulnerable artists and try to intimidate us into conceding to a bad deal that undervalues music and shortchanges artists and songwriters as well as their fans.
“We will never do that.”
TikTok, in explaining its side of this fiasco, blasted UMG for its “greed.”
“It is sad and disappointing that Universal Music Group has put their own greed above the interests of their artists and songwriters,” the platform said in a statement.
TikTok continued: “Despite Universal’s false narrative and rhetoric, the fact is they have chosen to walk away from the powerful support of a platform with well over a billion users that serves as a free promotional and discovery vehicle for their talent.
“TikTok has been able to reach ‘artist-first’ agreements with every other label and publisher.
“Clearly, Universal’s self-serving actions are not in the best interests of artists, songwriters and fans.”
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