TikTok users can no longer listen to songs by Taylor Swift, The Weeknd, The Beatles and other artists or add them to their videos, following a breakdown in negotiations with Universal over compensation.
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All tracks recorded under the Universal Music Group (UMG) license were removed from TikTok’s music library on Thursday, February 1, and all videos containing Universal Music licensed music were muted. The previous licensing agreement between UMG and TikTok expired on January 31. After the failure of negotiations, the main world major in the music industry on Tuesday accused TikTok of“trying to build a business based on music, without paying fair value for music.”
Among the issues raised during negotiations were appropriate remuneration for artists and songwriters, online safety for users and protecting artists from the dangers of artificial intelligence, the company added.
TikTok said in a statement that it was “sad and disappointing that Universal Music Group has put its own greed ahead of the interests of its artists.” Universal’s roster of artists is immense and includes Kendrick Lamar, U2 and Bob Dylan. Despite the size of TikTok’s user base, this deal represents only about 1% of Universal’s total revenue, the record company said. Universal noted other problems, such as the presence on the platform of a large number of recordings generated by artificial intelligence. She also accuses the application of not fighting sufficiently against violations of artists’ rights.
Owned by the Chinese group ByteDance, TikTok is one of the most popular social networks in the world, with more than a billion users. It constitutes a major springboard for emerging artists and is used as a promotional tool by music labels.
