The short video sharing platform TikTok is very popular, especially for its dance videos. However, the platform needs to pay royalties in order to add songs to videos. The negative outcome of the copyright agreement between TikTok and Universal Music Group (UMG) will affect thousands of songs.
Will TikTok mute videos with songs?
Universal Music Group (UMG) and TikTok failed to reach an agreement on licensing terms. As a result, TikTok announced that it has removed its entire music catalog from the popular short video platform. Users will no longer have “official” access to UMG’s songs.
The dispute between the world’s largest music publisher and TikTok has been ongoing for some time. UMG’s license agreement with TikTok expired on January 31. Negotiations for a new contract remained inconclusive.
As of February 1, songs by UMG-affiliated artists such as Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish and Harry Styles have been removed from TikTok. If used on the platform, a copyright notice will be sent and the videos will be banned.
Universal Music Group is also inviting all videos that currently use their music to mute. If the songs are not removed from these videos, influencers with millions of followers may have their posts deleted.
In its latest announcement, UMG criticized TikTok for allegedly not respecting payment rates and artist rights. The company accused TikTok of “bullying” and not acting in the best interests of artists.
TikTok denied UMG’s allegations and accused the company of “putting greed above the interests of its artists”. TikTok also announced that it has reached agreements with all other publishers.
{{user}} {{datetime}}
{{text}}