back to article Universal Music accuses TikTok of 'intimidation' and threats to replace humans with AI

Multinational music giant Universal Music Group – home to Taylor Swift, Elton John, Bob Dylan, Bilie Eilish and plenty of other prominent musicians – has accused made-in-China social network TikTok of abusing its market power using tactics including promoting music created by AI. An open letter published on Tuesday titled "Why …

  1. ecofeco Silver badge
    Pirate

    Oh my

    How the turns have tabled!

    Most abusive music company on Earth accuses who of what?

    LOL wut?

    1. Dan 55 Silver badge

      Re: Oh my

      In other news World's Smallest Violin was not released by Universal.

  2. ldo Silver badge

    “You must have our artists on your platform!”

    “And you must pay us for the privilege!”

  3. DS999 Silver badge

    Will anyone on Tik Tok care?

    Tik Tok has already licensed some minor artists for the sort of background music people use in their Tik Toks. They already have the creepy AI voiceover, why not creepy AI music as well? Instagram is the one that would be hurt if they lost their ability to use popular music, seems like every other Instagram video includes some sort of pop music background. I don't use it but I assume they must make it really easy to select what you want, while Tik Tok presumably makes that really difficult (and perhaps soon, impossible)

    Hasn't hurt Tik Tok's popularity so far, so I doubt they care.

  4. robinsonb5

    "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," *

    Does this remind anyone else of pubs and bars expecting bands to play for free in return for "exposure"?

    It's hard to root for either side here, but anything which serves to reduce TikTok's appeal is probably a net gain for humanity...

    [* a continuation of TikTok's quote, omitted from TFA, but which I read elsewhere.]

    1. elsergiovolador Silver badge

      Does this remind anyone else of pubs and bars expecting bands to play for free in return for "exposure"?

      It's more like pubs and bars paying band's manager through the nose and keep hush about it and the band thinks they play free for exposure while manager buys themselves another sports car.

  5. elsergiovolador Silver badge

    Univershite

    There is plenty of other music out there. World really doesn't need overpriced "ready meal" level kind of content.

  6. Evil Scot Bronze badge
    Facepalm

    One day the PRS cheque will come...

    Googles Nathan Evans Wellerman Distributed by...

    why am I surprised by my facepalm?

  7. dippy1

    Last Post

    This the company that intimidated my son with a message to take a down a youtube video of himself playing the last post as it was infringing on their copyright!

  8. ChrisElvidge Silver badge

    Disgruntled with who?

    "The Register's Gen Z expert – your correspondent's young adult daughter – said TikTok needs Universal's big artists because users will be disgruntled if they can't access established stars' tunes on the platform."

    Yes, possibly, but will they be disgruntled with TikTok for not having the music - and migrate to a platform that does - or with Universal - and not buy/listen to Universal's artistes?

  9. Dinanziame Silver badge
    Trollface

    TikTok's counter is that its platform lets a billion people access music for free

    I can totally see this being a convincing argument with Universal

  10. tiggity Silver badge

    Sign me up

    Sign me up: A social media platform with no music from Taylor Swift, U2, Coldplay, Rick Astley (I guess that means no Rickrolling twattery then), Sam Smith, Bieber etc. Yes Please!!!!

    Only kidding, not really a social media user. Universal may be the biggest music rights co, but there's plenty of other music out there. Though could get interesting if Sony etc all follow the same path.

    "Other half" uses social media, I despise the needless soundtracks that people feel the need to add, why not just have no irritating soundtracks (at least she's trained to put headphones in if I'm around and she is on social media sites!).

    CBA to research if Universal own rights to "Sound of Silence" to potentially add a riff on that theme.

  11. Tron Silver badge

    Uncle Sam wants to dismantle TikTok.

    Just blocking it will kill the younger vote, which Biden depends on. So they will lean on anyone in the US market to pull out.

    TikTok could simply implement a window in a window feature, the Universal content showing in an embedded/minimised user browser window, piped direct from YouTube. It's a feature TVs have had for years, although nobody seems to ever use it.

    Data moves like water. Plumbing is easy.

    1. Dinanziame Silver badge

      Re: Uncle Sam wants to dismantle TikTok.

      I think YouTube already has a system that's supposed to prevent you from watching certain videos from another website. Not sure if it works though.

  12. EricB123 Silver badge

    The Plug Has Been Pulled

    I have had some Tiktok effects that I wrote using music from Tiktok itself stripped of the music in them due to 'Copyright Violation' today. At least now I know why.

    Probably be better to just generate the music myself. The quality will suffer but at least no copyright violations - I think.

  13. JulieM Silver badge

    There is historical precedent

    Way back in the mists of time, supermarkets actually flirted with "own brand" gramophone records; paying for the licence (which cost a fixed amount, payable to the composers -- possibly without even going via the usual collection agency) to record cover versions of hit songs, then block-booking recording studios and using non-union artists in back-to-back sessions to produce their own recordings as cheaply as possible.

    I'm sure TikTok could do something similar, if Universal won't licence their own recordings.

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