Warner Music COO, Armin Zerza: Music Is Under-Monetized, Under-Digitized, and Ripe for ‘Years of Productivity’
Warner Music COO Armin Zerza, former Activision Blizzard CFO, told the JPMorgan conference that music is under‑monetized and under‑digitized, with significant upside from AI and catalog exploitation. He noted that Warner’s catalog accounts for 65% of streaming revenue and yields over 50% margins, and that AI tools are being deployed to monetize the long‑tail. The company reported $1.73 billion revenue for Q2, a 12.1% YoY increase, and raised its margin‑expansion target after delivering 270 basis points of improvement. Zerza also said public market valuations lag private catalog multiples and that publishing and distribution will drive future growth, especially in Latin America.
Spotify to Reserve Concert Tickets for Superfans on Premium Tier; Live Nation Confirmed as Launch Partner as Companies Strike Multi-Year...
Spotify is launching "Reserved," a feature that holds two concert tickets per tour for the platform's most engaged Premium subscribers. The service, backed by a multi‑year partnership with Live Nation, will debut in the United States this summer before rolling...
Spotify and Universal Music Group Strike Landmark Deal to Let Fans Create AI Covers and Remixes – as a Paid...
Spotify and Universal Music Group have sealed a licensing pact that lets Premium subscribers pay to generate AI‑powered covers and remixes of participating artists' songs. The tool, built on an undisclosed generative‑AI platform, will be an optional add‑on while all...
Owner of Peanuts Music Catalog Files Four Copyright Lawsuits Targeting Video Game Publisher, Social Media Posts, and the US Government
Lee Mendelson Film Productions, which controls the Vince Guaraldi Peanuts music catalog, filed four federal copyright lawsuits on May 20. The suits target GameMill Entertainment, Heritage Auctions, Buckle‑Down Inc., and the U.S. Department of the Interior, alleging unlicensed use of...
OpenAI Preparing to File for IPO Within Days (Report)
OpenAI is poised to file a confidential U.S. IPO as early as May 22, with a public debut targeted for September. The ChatGPT maker, valued at $852 billion after a $122 billion funding round, is working with Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley on...
Spanish Society SGAE Distributed $406M to over 97,000 Members in 2025 as Revenue Hits Record High
Spain’s SGAE collection society reported a record‑high revenue of €393.4 million ($444 million) in 2025 and distributed €360 million ($406 million) in royalties, a 3.1% increase over 2024. The payout reached 97,415 authors and composers, up 16.5% year‑over‑year, while new memberships jumped 64% to...
Wixen Doubles Damages Demand to $102M in Expanded Copyright Lawsuit Against Meta
Wixen Music Publishing filed an amended complaint against Meta, doubling its statutory damages demand to $102.15 million and expanding the catalog at issue from 331 to 681 works. The suit now adds $20 million in defamation damages and trade‑libel claims, accusing Meta...
UMPG and 45RPM Sign Academy Award-Winning Composer Daniel Blumberg
Universal Music Publishing Group (UMPG) has signed Oscar‑winning composer Daniel Blumberg to a global publishing deal, partnering with its music‑supervision arm 45RPM. The agreement places Blumberg in UMPG’s Classics & Screen division alongside composers such as Nicholas Britell and Isobel Waller‑Bridge. Blumberg, who...
Evan Whikehart Named General Manager, North America at IDOL, as Paris-Headquartered Indie Says Its Annual Revenue Topped $50m Globally Last...
Paris‑based independent distributor IDOL appointed Evan Whikehart, formerly of Secretly Distribution, as General Manager for North America and LATAM. The move follows IDOL’s announcement that global revenue exceeded $50 million last year, with North America delivering almost a third of sales...
Japan’s Avex Sees Music Segment Revenues Grow 6.8% YoY to $810M in Latest Fiscal Year
Avex Inc. reported music‑segment revenue of $810 million for FY2026, a 6.8% year‑over‑year increase, and turned an operating loss into a $23 million profit. Live entertainment was the primary driver, delivering $354 million in revenue, up 17.4% as its flagship act XG completed...
Suno Sued by Poseidon Wave Media, an Entity Behind Indie Duo The American Dollar, Claiming It ‘Nearly Eliminated’ Their Licensing...
AI music startup Suno faces a new copyright lawsuit from Poseidon Wave Media, the owner of ambient duo The American Dollar. The complaint alleges Suno trained its model on 236 of the duo's recordings without permission, causing an 80% drop...
Three Six Zero Launches Sports Management Division in Partnership with Florian Schroeder’s PRJCT:A
Three Six Zero has unveiled a new sports management arm, Three Six Zero Sports, in partnership with Florian Schroeder’s athlete representation firm PRJCT:A. The division brings a high‑profile roster that includes Premier League defender Reece James, Australian striker Sam Kerr, and former Arsenal...
Understanding Production Agreements in the Music Industry
Production agreements are contracts where a production company provides recording facilities, industry connections, and managerial support in exchange for a share of an artist’s earnings and rights to their music. While they can accelerate an artist’s break‑into‑the‑market by leveraging the...
BMI to Acquire Soundmouse From Orfium to Build ‘Largest and Most Comprehensive’ Global Cue Sheet Database
BMI, the world’s largest performing rights organization, announced it will acquire Soundmouse, an AI‑powered cue‑sheet management platform owned by Orfium. The acquisition, financed with BMI’s operating cash, is slated to close mid‑2026 and will keep Soundmouse operating as an independent...
After Raising $5M, Adobe-Backed Tamber Officially Launches Its AI Music-Making Platform
Adobe Ventures‑backed Tamber raised $5 million and launched an AI‑powered music suite that acts as an "intelligent creative layer" inside existing DAWs. The platform, dubbed "sonic intelligence," translates abstract prompts—like colors or textures—into usable musical elements rather than generating finished tracks....
As ABS Deals Reshape the Music Rights Landscape, KBRA Says It’s Rated $12.9B in Music Royalty-Backed Bonds Since 2020 –...
KBRA reports it has rated more than $12.9 billion of music‑royalty asset‑backed securities since 2020, a three‑fold increase from 2023. The agency now expects issuance to contract by roughly 25 percent in 2026, falling from about $3.3 billion annually to just over $2.5 billion....
Primary Wave Acquires Interests in Album Art Collection From Aubrey ‘Po’ Powell, Co-Founder of British Design Studio Hipgnosis
Primary Wave announced it has purchased the interests of Aubrey “Po” Powell in the Hipgnosis album‑art collection, which includes iconic covers for bands such as AC/DC, Black Sabbath, and Led Zeppelin. The acquisition also encompasses original props used in the...
Vietnam’s DAO Music Entertainment Strikes Strategic Partnership with The Orchard
Vietnamese music platform DAO Music Entertainment has signed a strategic partnership with The Orchard, Sony Music’s global distribution arm. The agreement gives DAO Music access to The Orchard’s worldwide network, enabling Vietnamese artists to reach international listeners. Founded in 2020,...
Spotify Raises Premium Prices in Canada by up to CAD $3 per Month
Spotify announced its first Canadian Premium price hike since 2024, raising the Individual plan to CAD $13.99 (≈$10.20 USD), Duo to CAD $19.99 (≈$14.60 USD) and Family to CAD $23.99 (≈$17.50 USD). The increases represent 10‑15% jumps, pushing Spotify above Apple Music (CAD $10.99) and Amazon Music...
Warner Music Forms Cross-Border Artist Development Platform GLIIDE with Thailand’s GMM Music
Warner Music and Thailand’s GMM Music have unveiled GLIIDE, a cross‑border artist‑development platform housed within their 2024 joint venture GMM Global. The initiative’s first act, SVRN, debuted with the video for “WHY,” signaling the start of a model that blends...
Barry Weiss’s RECORDS Promotes Andrew Saltman to SVP of Artist Development, Sara Gil to General Manager
Barry Weiss’s RECORDS announced two senior promotions on May 14, 2026. Andrew Saltman was elevated to Senior Vice President of Artist Development, overseeing a combined marketing and digital team for both the New York‑based label and its Nashville imprint. Sara Gil was...
Meet 2026’s First Breakout Band, According to Luminate – a Masked Math Rock Duo Called Angine De Poitrine, with Weekly...
Angine de Poitrine, a masked math‑rock duo from Quebec, exploded from obscurity to global virality after a KEXP live session went viral, amassing over 14 million YouTube views. Their second album, Vol. II, released April 3, generated more than 20 million Spotify streams and...
From Sony Music Publishing’s $4 Billion Catalog Deal to Live Nation’s ‘Blue Dot Fever’ Rebuttal… It’s MBW’s Weekly Round-Up
Sony Music Publishing confirmed a deal to buy Blackstone’s Recognition Music Group catalog, a portfolio of over 45,000 songs valued between $3.5 billion and $4 billion. The Red Hot Chili Peppers sold their recorded‑music catalog to Warner Music Group for more than $300 million...
What ‘Blue Dot Fever’? Live Nation CFO Says ‘There Is Absolutely No Data that Supports Any Issues’ with Ticket Sales.
Live Nation’s CFO Joe Berchtold dismissed the "blue‑dot fever" narrative, saying there is no data showing ticket‑sale problems. He highlighted that the company delivered 50,000 shows last year, with Q1 2026 revenue of $3.8 billion, up 12% YoY, and sold 107 million...
Primary Wave Strikes Partnership with Pete Townshend for ‘Future Creative Endeavors’ Including Use of His Name, Image, and Likeness Rights
Primary Wave announced a $100 million‑plus partnership with Pete Townshend, securing the rock legend’s name, image, likeness and select music rights. The deal expands Primary Wave’s NIL portfolio, which already includes estates such as Bob Marley, Harry Chapin and Eartha Kitt. The company recently closed...
Managers of Grammy Winners Justice and Gesaffelstein Back Music Biz Masters Targeting Emerging Markets
Christian De Rosnay, manager of Grammy‑winning Justice, and Alexandra Pilz Hayot, manager of Gesaffelstein, will act as patrons for a new MSc in International Music Business launching in France in September 2026. The English‑taught degree is a joint effort between Rennes School...
Warner Music Group’s Armin Zerza Adds COO Role to His Remit, Just One Year After Joining as CFO
Warner Music Group announced that CFO Armin Zerza will also assume the chief operating officer role, effective May 8. The promotion arrives as WMG posted second‑quarter revenue of $1.73 billion, up 12% year‑over‑year, and an adjusted OIBDA margin of 22.9%. Zerza’s new...
Bertelsmann Veteran Björn Bauer Named CFO of Combined BMG-Concord Music Company
Bertelsmann’s BMG and Concord have appointed Björn Bauer as chief financial officer of the merged music company, with the role taking effect when the merger closes in the second half of 2026. The combined entity will be headquartered in Nashville...
If You Thought the US Music Industry Was Concerned About AI, You Should Hear What They’re Saying in China.
Tencent Music Entertainment (TME) warned that AI‑generated, copyright‑infringing tracks are creating "industry chaos" in China’s streaming market. On its Q1 2026 earnings call, TME said rivals such as ByteDance’s Soda Music and NetEase Cloud Music are using AI to bulk‑fill catalogs,...
Jim Mahoney Promoted to New Chief Membership Officer Role at Merlin
Merlin, the global digital‑music licensing cooperative for independent labels, announced on May 12 that longtime executive Jim Mahoney has been promoted to the newly created Chief Membership Officer role. Mahoney, who joined Merlin in 2014 and most recently served as SVP of...
Kobalt Inks Strategic Partnership with LAA Music, Founded by NFL Agent Zac Hiller and Music Exec Justin Goldman
Kobalt has entered a strategic partnership with LAA Music, the independent publishing venture founded by NFL agent Zac Hiller and music executive Justin Goldman. The agreement gives LAA Music access to Kobalt’s global publishing administration platform, leveraging a catalog that...
Tencent Music Generated over $1bn in Q1, up 7.3% YoY – Driven by Growth in Super VIP-Led Memberships and Concert...
Tencent Music Entertainment reported Q1 2026 revenue of RMB 7.90 billion ($1.15 billion), up 7.3% year‑over‑year. Growth was led by a 12.2% rise in music‑related services, especially the higher‑priced Super VIP tier and concert‑related revenues, while adjusted EBITDA climbed 10.5% to RMB 2.83 billion ($410 million). Membership services...
PassPass Closes ‘Seven-Figure’ Seed Round at $15m Valuation, Pitching Gamified Music Discovery to Artists
PassPass, a Nashville‑based platform that lets artists create scavenger‑hunt‑style experiences, closed a seven‑figure seed round at a $15 million pre‑money valuation led by Roots. Since its commercial launch in summer 2025, the service has amassed over 170,000 registered users across more...
Downtown’s CD Baby Launches ‘Full-Service’ Artist Program Offering Marketing, Distribution, and Financial Support for 10 Indie Acts in 2026
CD Baby, the artist‑direct arm of Downtown Music, unveiled the Stages Selects program, a full‑service offering that will support ten independent musicians through 2026. The package delivers priority distribution, targeted DSP marketing, paid digital‑campaign funding and strategic release guidance, with...
‘The UK Albums Chart Has Stopped Measuring the Future of Music.’
Kenny Gates argues that the UK Albums Chart no longer measures new music momentum because legacy compilations and greatest‑hits collections dominate the rankings. Streaming rules count every play as album‑equivalent sales, allowing decades‑old catalogues to compete directly with fresh releases....
Suno Fights to Keep Warner Music Settlement Terms Away From UMG and Sony
A U.S. magistrate judge barred Universal Music Group and Sony Music from obtaining the terms of Suno's settlement with Warner Music, citing limited evidentiary value of settlement agreements. Suno reaffirmed the ruling, arguing that disclosing the deal would undermine settlement...
Songwriters Sue HYBE, NewJeans, Claiming Elements of ‘How Sweet’ Were Taken From Their Rejected Demo
Four Los Angeles‑based songwriters have filed a copyright lawsuit in federal court against HYBE, its NewJeans unit ADOR, the creative agency BANA and even Coca‑Cola, alleging that the K‑pop group’s 2024 single “How Sweet” incorporates the topline of their rejected...
Michael Jackson Biopic Passes $500 Million at Global Box Office – as Sony Music Reaps Streaming Windfall From Catalog Stake
The Michael Jackson biopic "Michael" has amassed $577 million worldwide in three weekends, becoming the highest‑grossing music biopic domestically and the second ever to top $500 million. Its release triggered a 95% surge in streams of Jackson’s catalog, adding five million monthly...
From Tencent Music’s 250K Song Takedowns to Sony and WMG’s Calendar Q1 Results… It’s MBW’s Weekly Round-Up
Warner Music Group reported calendar Q1 2026 revenue of $1.73 billion, a 12.1% YoY rise, driven by a 12.7% increase in subscription streaming. Sony’s recorded‑music and publishing businesses generated $3.03 billion in the same quarter, up 19.5% YoY. YouTube introduced an AI‑generated...
Law Firm Serling Rooks Rebrands as McKoy Worob Averill Scott & Koenig LLP, Elevates Jeffrey Koenig and Adds Margo Scott...
New York‑based music and entertainment law firm Serling Rooks Hunter McKoy Worob & Averill LLP has rebranded as McKoy Worob Averill Scott & Koenig LLP, effective January 2026. The name change follows the exit of founding partners Reid Hunter and...
Sony Generated $3.03bn From Recorded Music and Publishing in Calendar Q1 2026, up 19.5% YoY
Sony Music’s recorded‑music and publishing businesses generated $3.03 billion in calendar Q1 2026, a 19.5% year‑over‑year increase on a constant‑currency basis. Streaming revenue rose 13.6% to $1.44 billion, while the “Other” segment – covering merch, live and licensing – jumped 51% to $632 million....
Jieun Kim Promoted to President of Warner Music Korea
Warner Music Group has promoted Jieun Kim from CFO to President of Warner Music Korea, placing her at the helm of operations in the world’s seventh‑largest recorded‑music market. The Korean market generated roughly $736 million in 2025, a 1.7% year‑over‑year increase, underscoring...
Australia’s UNIFIED Music Group Expands Into New Zealand with Matt Harvey Hire
Melbourne‑based UNIFIED Music Group announced its first formal foothold in New Zealand by hiring senior artist manager Matt Harvey. Harvey brings his roster—Shapeshifter, Daily J, Mim Jensen, Spell and former Shihad frontman Jon Toogood—under the UNIFIED umbrella. The move follows UNIFIED’s 2025 joint venture...
Africa-Focused Streamer Mdundo Receives Non-Binding Proposal From Investor Seeking up to 40% Stake
Mdundo, the Africa‑focused music streaming platform listed on Nasdaq First North Growth, received a non‑binding letter of intent from an undisclosed investor that could secure up to a 40% equity stake. The proposal combines a directed issue of new shares...
Believe Unveils AZTEC, Its First US Record Label Joint Venture, with Music Exec Az Cohen
Paris‑based Believe has launched its first U.S. joint‑venture label, AZTEC, with veteran music executive Az Cohen. Cohen, who previously grew 300 Entertainment and managed Post Malone, will serve as president of the New York‑based imprint. The partnership follows Believe’s recent...
BTS-Nomics, Overseas Investment Strategy, and the Future of K-Pop: 5 Things We Learned on HYBE’s Q1 Earnings Call
HYBE reported Q1 2026 revenue of $477 million, a 39.5% YoY rise, driven by BTS’s *Arirang* comeback. The company highlighted BTS as a “legendary brand” poised to dominate the global concert market and detailed margin‑protecting tactics such as a 360‑degree stage...
UMG Tells Appeals Court Salt-N-Pepa Termination Bid Lacks Legal Foundation
Universal Music Group asked the U.S. Second Circuit to uphold a January ruling that dismissed Salt‑N‑Pepa’s lawsuit seeking to reclaim ownership of their master recordings. The label argues the duo never owned the copyrights because the 1986 agreements transferred rights...
Want to Talk About ‘Superfans’? Ask Live Nation.
Live Nation announced a shift toward premium‑focused venues, aiming for up to 30 % of capacity to be dedicated to suites, boxes and VIP lounges. The company launched its Vinyl Room membership program, priced $750‑$6,000 annually, which has already pushed on‑site spend...
From Wine to Diamonds, Every Major Consumer Industry Protects You From Fakes. Why Doesn’t Music?
The music streaming ecosystem now ingests roughly 150,000 tracks each day, yet more than 90% lack any verification of authorship or rights. AI‑generated and self‑released content dominate new uploads, blurring the line between genuine artistry and synthetic files. Industry leaders...
A Bill in France Would Force AI Firms to Prove They Didn’t Use Copyrighted Content to Train Their Tech. The...
A coalition of 81 French cultural and media organisations is urging the National Assembly to debate the Darcos bill, which creates a rebuttable presumption that AI providers have used copyrighted works unless they can prove otherwise. The French Senate passed...