(Hypebot) — The third and final phase of TikTok’s forced takedown of all UMG-controlled music has begun. The short video service has 30 days from January 31, 2024, to complete all takedowns.
After UMG notified TikTok that it was not renewing its licensing agreements, sources told Hypebot that the music takedowns would happen in three phases.
In the first phase, TikTok removed songs recorded by UMG artists from its pre-cleared music library, making creating new videos using its tracks more difficult. In the second phase, videos already posted that included UMG music were muted.
Universal Music Group is estimated to control more than 3 – 4 million tracks from artists including Taylor Swift, Bad Bunny, The Weeknd, SZA, Drake, Billie Eilish, Kendrick Lamar, Rosalía, Harry Styles, Ariana Grande, Justin Bieber, Adele, U2, Elton John, J Balvin, Brandi Carlile, Coldplay, Post Malone and thousands more.
Phase 3
Now in its third phase, which has even broader implications for the creator community and the entire music industry, any use of the millions of songs controlled by UMG Publishing Group will be muted or taken down. Many of these tracks, including songs where only one of multiple songwriters are represented by UMGP, were recorded or covered by non-UMG artists and on non-UMG labels.
TikTok claims that these tracks represent 30% of music use, while MBW estimates that it could be as much as 80% of “relevant repertoire”.
Whatever the actual number, until the pair inevitably cut a new deal, the disagreement leaves a big hole in TikTok’s music offering.
Bruce Houghton is the Founder and Editor of Hypebot, a Senior Advisor at Bandsintown, President of the Skyline Artists Agency, and a Berklee College Of Music professor.
