The music of such major artists as Taylor Swift, Drake, and Billie Eilish could vanish from the video hosting service TikTok unless the social media platform can come to a last-minute deal with Universal Music Group.
UMG said it will no longer allow its music on TikTok, which is owned by the China-based company ByteDance, because a licensing deal between the two parties has expired. A new deal has yet to be reached.
The multi-national music company also represents such high profile names as Adele and Olivia Rodrigo, among others.
Content from its artists will also not be allowed on TikTok music services, a new feature that allows music fans to save songs they discover on the social media platform.
UMG Releases Statement
In a statement early on Wednesday, UMG said that it was pulling its tracks by the end of Wednesday because of a lack of compensation for both songwriters and singers unless negotiations with the social media giant can be agreed upon.In a letter Tuesday addressed to both artists and songwriters, UMG said the company had been pressing TikTok on three separate issues, according to a story by ABC. Those issues include: appropriate compensation for artists and songwriters, protecting human artists from the harmful effects of AI (artificial intelligence), and online safety for TikTok’s users.
According to UMG, TikTok has proposed paying its artists and songwriters at a rate that’s only a fraction of what the other big social platforms pay. The Dutch-American-owned UMG also noted that TikTok makes up only approximately one percent of its total revenue.
TikTok Accused of Taking Advantage of Artists
In an open letter to its artists entitled “Why We Must Call Time Out on TikTok,” UMG stated publicly how TikTok has long attempted to get away without paying artists their due.
“Ultimately, TikTok is trying to build a music-based business, without paying fair value for the music,” said UMG, as reported by NBC News.
Besides the growth of AI tools used in videos and their effect on intellectual property, the company also noted its concerns over the growing amount of content that commits copyright infringement and what they deemed “a tidal wave of hate speech, bigotry, bullying and harassment.”
Universal Music also noted how difficult it is to have troubling content removed from the social media platform if the need arises. They described it as a “monumentally cumbersome and inefficient process which equates to the digital equivalency of Whack-a-Mole.”
UMG Calls Out TikTok’s Bullying Tactics
Also alarming was UMG’s allegations about the social media giant’s attempts to bully the company into accepting a deal “worth less than the previous deal and far less than fair market value and not reflective of their exponential growth.” They also made claims of intimidation by TikTok by “selectively removing the music of certain of our developing artists,” while keeping “audience-driving global stars.”Needless to say, TikTok’s view of the scuffle is different. The video hosting service claims Universal Music is the greedy party and noted its actions are “self-serving and not in the best interest of artists, songwriters, and fans.”
TikTok Says It’s Copacetic With Other Music Publishers
The platform also noted it has reached “artist-first” agreements with every other label and publisher.The company made news last year when it signed a music licensing deal with Warner Music Group.
“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,” TikTok said, according to the NBC News report.
