MBW Reacts

Analysis News

Andreessen Horowitz’s thoughts on AI shows what the music industry will be up against in 2024

The company's views place it squarely on the opposite side of the issue from much of the music industry

Analysis

Here’s exactly how Spotify’s new 1,000 annual streams royalty policy works…

Spotify is introducing a significant update to the way it calculates recorded royalties next year

Analysis

Spotify has laid off 2,300 employees this year. That’s a shock – but also kind of inevitable.

On: Promises made at Investor Days, Christmas Walks, and Daniel Ek's long-term aim for his shareholders

Analysis News

NMPA: Generative AI is ‘the greatest risk to the human creative class that has ever existed’

Everything we learned from the National Music Publishers Association's US Copyright Office submission

Analysis

3 observations on… the sale of BMI (and Google’s entrance into music rights management)

On BMI's fraternizing with CapitalG (aka Alphabet's fund), plus a windfall for radio broadcasters, and $100 million of money going to songwriters and publishers

Analysis News

What Universal Music Group really thinks about generative AI and copyright law…

MBW has digested UMG's revelatory 99-page submission to the US Copyright Office on generative AI. Here's what we've discovered.

Analysis

The modern record industry is moving into its ‘cut to grow’ phase.

On layoffs at Warner Music Group and BMG, and an upcoming cost savings program at Universal Music Group

Analysis

WMG’s Robert Kyncl expects more artist-centric streaming deals, and 2 other things we learned on the company’s latest earnings call

Warner Music Group's CEO weighed in on YouTube's new AI tool that clones superstars' voices, and said he's talking to politicians about AI regulation.

Analysis

Live Nation’s Michael Rapino lays out the argument for why concerts – not streaming – are the future of the music biz

Rapino spoke at length at Liberty Media's investor conference in New York last week, breaking down the economics of his company's field

Analysis

Talking ‘garbage’: How can Spotify and co sort the dregs of the music business from the hidden treasures?

On Sir Lucian Grainge's bluntness, Believe's rebellion, and why a careful balance is required to find a true 'artist-centric' formula

Analysis News

Four things we learned from Sir Lucian Grainge on Universal’s Q3 earnings call… that wasn’t ‘Merchants of Garbage’

From Deezer to AI and China, UMG's leadership team discussed a number of key topics for the business

Analysis

Hipgnosis Songs Fund has been left concussed by ‘discontinuation’. But with a seemingly rock solid ‘call option’, Merck Mercuriadis still holds all the cards.

On: Hipgnosis Songs Fund, the all important 'call option', Blackstone, and the most likely outcome of this week's mess

Analysis

Blatant Plagiarism? 5 key takeaways from Universal’s lyrics lawsuit against AI unicorn Anthropic

Lawsuit against AI company could prove to be a decisive moment in establishing the legal boundaries of artificial intelligence

Analysis

3 observations on… how Japan’s music industry caters to (and relies on) ‘superfans’ more than any other market

Examples of how Japan's music business has fostered a special kind of connection with superfans in its market

Analysis News

The strategic reason HYBE’s Chairman wants to retire in 10 years, and 2 other things we learned from Bang Si-Hyuk’s recent interview

Bang Si-hyuk explained the logic behind HYBE's US expansion, the differences between the US and Korean music industries, and his retirement, in recent chat with Bloomberg